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How has COVID affected migrants in the gig economy? – I've been putting together a reading list and some reflections. Thought I'd share. Please add sources I missed in comments.
To recap, the gig economy is a data black hole. Anecdotally we know immigrants are overrepresented, but we have only one rigorous study (shown below). Zero evidence on how platforms jobs affect lifetime wages, social networks, language development etc.
https://migrationdataportal.org/blog/zipline-trap-gig-economy-integration
https://migrationdataportal.org/blog/zipline-trap-gig-economy-integration
Platform work is a mixed bag for immigrants. It circumvents barriers to work but can be isolating. Earnings are low, inconsistent or opaque. It offers few of the second order benefits of work, like friendship or support navigating ‘the system’. https://migrationdataportal.org/blog/zipline-trap-gig-economy-integration
There are important ways that platform work interacts with the shadow economy; companies are often lax with checks, and they’re at arm’s length from migrants who may be working illegally or exploited through subcontracting https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/16/business/uber-eats-deliveroo-glovo-migrants.html
COVID has complicated all of this. It has brought a decline in ridesharing and personal services alongside growth in delivery. It has exposed frontline workers to the virus and laid bare the hazards of being excluded from sick pay, healthcare, and occupational health standards.
But there's lots of emerging research and it's time to think about this more deeply. That's the goal of @nielsvdoorn who launched a call for papers on migration and the gig economy http://www.markgraham.space/blog/2020/6/9/call-for-papers-migration-migrant-workers-and-the-gig-economy-environment-and-planning-a
. @nielsvdoorn argues that “platform labour is predominantly migrant labour”. He calls for “ambitious policies at the intersection of immigration, social welfare, and employment regulation" - *reclassification is not enough* https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3622589
A new survey by @chrisbenner and colleagues found that COVID in San Fran was pushing vulnerable workers “to the brink”; more than half lost 75-100% of income (and over half were immigrants). They also fall through the cracks in relief packages https://transform.ucsc.edu/on-demand-and-on-the-edge/
An article by @KatieJWells & co on Uber in Washington DC details the extreme hoops drivers have to go through to even apply for unemployment insurance during COVID https://points.datasociety.net/shifting-gears-42ae36d31087
An article on platform ‘immobilities’ describes how platform workers switched to filling seasonal workers gaps to harvest German fields - a surprising snapshot https://www.routedmagazine.com/platform-immobilities
We need to connect all this work up and think about the longer-term ramifications for work, social cohesion. Back in 2018, @LiamPatuzzi and I attempted to set out some scenarios for 2028. Business as usual’ now seems off-the-table... https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/jobs-2028-changing-labour-markets-immigrant-integration-europe
People have long been saying the gig economy is marginal, that we are wont to overstate labour market change. But all it takes is a catalysing event... and COVID-19 is a gamechanger. Interested in hearing from futurists on what could lie ahead.
Small sidebar: Algorithmic decisionmaking in criminal justice has attracted a ton of scrutiny. It’s use in immigration policymaking and in everyday practices of the gig economy has not – despite all the same risks of baked-in discrimination.
In practice, we may see more atypical work, more precarity, more people floundering amid massive job losses... and maybe more self-employment in all of its forms. We need to think creatively about restarting the economic engine and about the social safety net that supports it.
One has to hope for a future where gig economy work isn’t all on offer to migrants & minorities because of discrimination in labour market (as argued in this FT article). COVID is a time to think differently about the quality of work - and reduce barriers
https://macaudailytimes.com.mo/files/pdf2016/FT-2511-2016-03-07.pdf
https://macaudailytimes.com.mo/files/pdf2016/FT-2511-2016-03-07.pdf
