scholarly journals The Evolution of the Online Platform Economy: Evidence from Five Years of Banking Data

2019 ◽  
Vol 109 ◽  
pp. 362-366
Author(s):  
Diana Farrell ◽  
Fiona Greig ◽  
Amar Hamoudi

Measuring the gig economy has been challenging. Drawing on anonymized administrative banking data, we measure supply-side participation in the online platform economy between 2013 and 2018. We find 2.3 million account holders who received payments from 128 transportation, non-transport work, selling, and leasing platforms. Participation grew rapidly, particularly in the transportation sector. Average monthly revenues declined among drivers and increased among lessors even within metro areas. At least a third--and likely more--of the decline in transportation revenues is driven by decreases in hours worked. These findings raise important policy questions and motivate promising directions for future work.

Author(s):  
José Manuel Saiz-Alvarez

The Online Platform Economy (OPE) is a part of the Gig Economy defined by the hiring of temporary and highly-flexible workers (freelancers and independent contractors) instead of full-time employees to perform tasks (“gigs”), as well as by using 4G and 5G ICTs-based technologies for crowdwork, crowdvoting, and crowdsolving. These online platform businesses provide businesses and consumers access to low-cost, on-demand labor. But gig workers' experiences are more complex, as they have access to very flexible, potentially autonomous work. They also deal with challenges caused by the nature of the work, its precariousness, and their relationships with online platforms. This chapter studies OPEs and the Gig Economy. The author defines the concept of the Gig Economy and its importance, and analyzes it through a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis. Then, the OPE, as a digital value creator, is studied. The chapter includes perspectives and conclusions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Filippo Belloc

AbstractWe study hours worked by drivers in the peer-to-peer transportation sector with cross-side network effects. Medallion lease (regulated market), commission-based (Uber-like pay) and profit-sharing (“pure” taxi coop) compensation schemes are compared. Our static model shows that network externalities matter, depending on the number of active drivers. When the number of drivers is limited, in the presence of positive network effects, a regulated system always induces more hours worked, while the commission fee influences the comparative incentives towards working time of Uber-like pay versus profit-sharing. When the number of drivers is infinite (or close to it), the influence of network externalities on optimal working time vanishes. Our model helps identifying which is the pay scheme that best remunerates longer working times and offers insights to regulators seeking to improve the intensive margin of coverage by taxi services.


2020 ◽  
Vol 110 ◽  
pp. 157-161
Author(s):  
Andrew Garin ◽  
Emilie Jackson ◽  
Dmitri K. Koustas ◽  
Carl McPherson

The rise of freelance work in the online platform economy (OPE) has received considerable media and policy attention in recent years, but freelance work is by no means a new phenomenon. In this paper, we draw on IRS tax records to identify instances when workers begin doing online platform work versus other freelance/independent contractor “gig” work for firms. We find gig work occurs around major reductions in outside income and document usage over the lifecycle. Our results provide suggestive evidence on motivations for entering into each type of work.


2021 ◽  
pp. 105-128
Author(s):  
Jasmin Schreyer

The so-called ‘platform economy' or ‘gig economy' and its ambivalent effects on the working environment is a focal point of social science research. The contribution analyses, based on a case study, algorithmic work in the platform economy, its working conditions, and the way gig workers organised and articulated their protest. The algorithmic management of Lieferando (formerly Foodora) governs its employees through algorithmic-driven and standardized work coordination. Therefore, different conflicts between the company and its workers arose, concerning working conditions, working relations, and co-determination. Organising, protest, and established co-determination mechanisms play a crucial role for the employees. As a result, there exists currently a few institutionalized relationships between the platform and its workforce in Germany.


Author(s):  
Gabriella Angie Ongky ◽  
Nina Carina

Our lifestyle and work patterns are undergoing changes. One of them is the implementation of the Work From Home (WFH) system which is triggered by the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic that is sweeping the world. WFH was considered as one of the most effective steps to reduce the spread of the pandemic. However, WFH also has shortcomings which cannot facilitate the work process optimally, both physically and psychologically. In this day and age, the boundaries between working and living are slowly fading away and are no longer distinctly separate. Work or live activities no longer require their respective spaces, but can also be done in the same space. In connection with the concept of future dwelling, the public-private blurring character can be an important point that is fit with the characteristics of future residents (millennial generation workers) who are more concerned with quality than quantity of space. The method used is a qualitative descriptive analysis method which goes through several stages starting with the identification of issues, the search for theory and literacy, data analysis, and the formation of design concepts. This project is designed as a form of a new typology of work, based on the characteristics of Work, Play & Live that specially designed for the millenials. The Co- Dwell is a cooperative communal housing project that can accommodate and facilitate creative digital workers, who also develop along with the booming gig economy trend. This project is designed to become an embryo for the development of future work-live facilities. Keywords: blurring public-private; new work-live typology; WFH; Work-Play-Live AbstrakPola hidup dan pola bekerja kita sekarang ini telah mengalami perubahan. Salah satunya adalah penerapan sistem Work From Home (WFH) yang dipicu oleh adanya penyebaran pandemi Covid-19 yang melanda dunia. WFH dinilai sebagai salah satu langkah paling efektif untuk menekan penyebaran pandemi. Namun, WFH juga memiliki kekurangan seperti tidak dapat memfasilitasi proses bekerja secara maksimal, baik secara fisik maupun psikologi. Pada masa sekarang ini, batasan antara bekerja dan berhuni perlahan memudar dan tidak lagi nyata terpisah. Kegiatan bekerja maupun berhuni tidak lagi membutuhkan ruang tersendiri, namun bisa juga dilakukan dalam satu ruang yang sama. Berhubungan dengan konsep berhuni masa depan, karakter blurring public-private ini bisa menjadi poin penting yang dianggap sesuai dengan karakteristik penghuni masa depan (generasi milenial) yang lebih mementingkan kualitas dibanding kuantitas ruang. Metode yang digunakan adalah metode analisis deskriptif kualitatif yang melalui beberapa tahap dimulai dengan identifikasi isu, pencarian teori dan literasi, analisis data, serta pembentukan konsep perancangan. Proyek ini dirancang sebagai bentuk tipologi baru berhuni-bekerja dengan dasar karakteristik Work, Play & Live yang dirancang khusus bagi pekerja generasi masa depan. The Co-Dwell merupakan suatu proyek hunian komunal kooperatif yang dapat menampung dan memfasilitasi kebutuhan khususnya para pekerja digital kreatif yang ikut berkembang seiring dengan maraknya tren gig economy. Proyek ini dirancang bertujuan untuk menjadi embrio bagi perkembangan fasilitas berhuni-bekerja masa depan.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Boidurjo Rick Mukhopadhyay ◽  
Chris R. Chatwin

This article investigates the motivation of contingent workers in the gig economy of China, particularly focusing on the two Mobile Food Delivery Aggregators (MFDA) - Meituan and Ele.me that controls over 80% of the food delivery market in China. The convenience of one ‘super-app' on phone, offered by each of these companies, allows users to order a diversified range of products and services starting from food, clothing to travel booking and ride-hailing. Online food ordering, however, tops the chart of online orders and this creates millions of food delivery rider jobs/gigs in mainland China. This paper draws key insights from the employee motivation theories by Herzberg and Taylor which underpins the findings and thematic discussion of this qualitative paper. While it is important to recognise that the usage growth of these MFDAs and consequently new gig creation is exponentially growing, the implications of this research would inform these online platform-based companies how to better design motivational factors or incentives to boost their employee satisfaction, engagement and levels of commitments in the colossal Gig economy of mainland China.


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