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Is the ‘gig economy’ just capitalism’s latest form of exploitation?

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Is the ‘gig economy’ just capitalism’s latest form of exploitation?

It’s sometimes referred to as the ‘gig economy’; it’s even been called the ‘Uberisation’ of work. Whatever you call it, digital platforms are transforming the nature of modern employment. This new form of platform capitalism promises unparalleled autonomy and flexibility for its workers, and convenience and affordability for consumers.

In effect, however, these platforms are atomising tasks and reducing workers to the barest quantum of labour-value. At the same time, employees are increasingly being stripped of reciprocal obligation on the part of their putative employers (whether in the form of benefits, sick leave, superannuation or even tenure). In other words, workers in the gig economy are not employees at all – they are independent contractors.

Are there conditions, then, under which the gig economy might be considered moral? While platform capitalism clearly has profound implications for the workers who find themselves at its mercy, what are the ethical implications for consumers? After all, it is consumers’ preparedness to choose, en masse, low prices and convenience over stable, humane working conditions and fair wages that are at the heart of capitalism’s longevity.

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Ethics, Business, Economics and Finance, Work, Science and Technology, Digital Art, Lifestyle and Leisure
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