Archive: Gig Economy

• WCP: The Challenges of Organizing “Gig” Workers

  When we think about organizing precarious “gig” workers, the task seems biblical. The workers may be ready, or not, but the spirit and the flesh are weak. We all bemoan the rise of gig workers. Low pay, few hours, no benefits are some of them, worsened by the uncertainty of a position where you can only work to deliver something being demanded by consumers at a premium you are powerless to control.

  Category: Visiting Scholars Tags: Gig Economy, John Russo, Sherry Linkon, Uber, Wade Rathke, WCP, Working-Class Perspectives

• Tax Uber and Lift the Veil

  For Game 6 of the Capitals’ conference finals, Uber provided funding for late-night Metro service. It may have been a coincidence that Uber’s gesture came just as the D.C. Council weighs a proposal th

  Categories: Articles, In the News, Practitioner Fellows, Visiting Scholars Tags: Blog, Declan Cullen, Gig Economy, Kafui Attoh, Katie Wells, Ridesharing, Uber

• Katie Wells Joins KI to Research Work Lives of Uber Drivers

  We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Katie Wells, who is beginning a 3-year Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor the Working Poor. Katie has been conducting groundbreaking researc

  Categories: People, Practitioner Fellows, Visiting Scholars Tags: Gig Economy, Katie Wells, People, Postdoctoral Fellow, Research, Ridesharing, Uber

• WCP: Uber, “Metropocalypse,” and Economic Inequality in DC

  Researchers have already revealed the poor working conditions, high risks, and financial instability that Uber drivers face. In this week’s Working-Class Perspective, Katie Wells, Kafui Attoh, and Declan Cullen show how Uber’s cozy relationship with D.C. policymakers allowed it to pass special rules in its favor. As a result, Washingtonians will likely experience heightened inequality, more discrimination, and worse public transportation.

  Category: Visiting Scholars Tags: Declan Cullen, Gig Economy, Inequality, John Russo, Kafui Attoh, Katie Wells, Lyft, Mayor Bowser, Public transportation, Regulation, Ridesharing, Sharing economy, Sherry Linkon, Uber, Urban Studies, Washington DC, WCP, Working-Class Perspectives

• WCP: The Work Lives of Uber Drivers Are Worse Than You Think

  Uber promises freedom and flexibility to drivers but instead delivers risk, exploitation, and low wages that compel drivers to work long and inconvenient hours. That is what Katie Wells, Kafui Attoh, and Declan Cullen discovered by conducting a groundbreaking series of interviews with 40 Uber drivers in the DC area, highlighted in this week’s Working-Class Perspective.

  Category: Visiting Scholars Tags: Declan Cullen, Gig Economy, John Russo, Kafui Attoh, Katie Wells, Precarity, Sharing economy, Sherry Linkon, Technology, Uber, WCP, Working-Class Perspectives

• WCP: Everyday Encounters: Antagonism in the Sharing Economy

  Both workers and consumers are bearing the brunt of changes to contemporary service industry jobs caused by the advent of the sharing economy. In this week's Working-Class Perspective, Diane Negra a

  Category: Visiting Scholars Tags: Amazon, Customer Service, Diane Negra, Digital Platforms, Gig Economy, John Russo, Sharing economy, Sherry Linkon, Technology, WCP, Working-Class Perspectives

• WCP: Poverty and Precarious Work

  Over the Labor Day weekend we celebrated workers and unions, but work itself is becoming increasingly precarious. In this week's Working-Class Perspective, John Russo argues that we should examine t

  Category: Visiting Scholars Tags: Gig Economy, John Russo, Labor day, Neoliberalism, Poverty, Precarity, Sherry Linkon, WCP, Working-Class Perspectives