Researchers from Oxford University say the 2019 General Election is a critical moment for the economic and social wellbeing of the millions of workers in the UK’s “gig economy”.
Political parties have released their election manifestos, which include pledges to help gig workers, like those who drive cars for ride-sharing companies, clean houses, deliver takeaways or undertake freelance office-based tasks.
Research has shown that gig work is often low paid, and comes with little job security and few benefits. Insecure work has the potential to erode workers’ rights, and undermine working communities. However, there is a lot that governments can do to make the gig economy better for workers.
The Fairwork Foundation, a team from the Oxford Internet Institute at the University of Oxford, has undertaken the first analysis of party commitments to supporting workers in the gig economy. The resulting scorecard shows a clear difference across party lines.
Professor Mark Graham, Director of the Fairwork Foundation, said:
“With the gig economy growing so rapidly, and such diversity in parties’ pledges, the 2019 General Election is in some ways ‘the election of the gig worker’.
“So if you work in the gig economy, or care about those who do, check out our scorecard, which lays out some key things that each of the main parties will do to improve gig workers’ rights.”
Representatives from each of the parties featured were contacted for comment.
Professor of Internet Geography
Mark Graham is an economic geographer. His research focuses on digital labour, the gig economy, and digital inequalities. He is the author, most recently, of The Gig Economy: A Critical Introduction.
Former Postdoctoral Researcher
Dr Kelle Howson is a Research Associate on the Fairwork project. Kelle is a development geographer interested in how ethical certification is reshaping governance and power relations in global networks.
The Fairwork Foundation will certify online labour platforms, using leverage from workers, consumers, and platforms to improve the welfare and job quality of digital workers.
