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Article

11 Jul 2017

Author:
Robert Booth, Guardian

UK: Gig economy review delivers benefits but brings no job security

After nine months of study and a road trip around British towns and cities being transformed for better and worse by rapid changes in the way we work, the government’s employment reviewer, Matthew Taylor, has grasped one nettle, if not the whole bunch. The Trades Unions Congress is disappointed there is little in the former Blair adviser’s recommendations to act against job insecurity which affects millions of workers who are in self-employment or on zero-hours contracts. A right for agency workers to request fixed hours when they have been engaged with the same hirer for 12 months is something. But millions will still fear the loss of their work at a moment’s notice, even as they may enjoy the flexibility of being able to work when they want. [In addition,] he has not blown away the uncertainties of a working life spent in the gig economy whose workers now number about 1.1 million. He has disappointed trade unions by not demanding full employment rights for people who work for companies such as Uber and Deliveroo. Instead, he has argued for the innovation and flexibility that both zero-hours and gig economy work, at their best, can enable...On the plus side, [Taylor] has made a strong case for Theresa May’s government to finally redress a widely felt imbalance between poor workers and rich investors in some of the most highly valued and profitable companies in the world. [also refers to Deliveroo, DPD, Hermes, Uber & UK Mail]

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