After the Gig: How the Sharing Economy Got Hijacked and How to Win It Back

by Juliet Schor

Overview

Management & Workplace Culture Book of the Year, 2020 Porchlight Business Book Awards

A Publishers Weekly Fall 2020 Big Indie Book

The dark side of the gig economy (Uber, Airbnb, etc.) and how to make it equitable for the users and workers most exploited. 

When the “sharing economy” launched a decade ago, proponents claimed that it would transform the experience of work—giving earners flexibility, autonomy, and a decent income. It was touted as a cure for social isolation and rampant ecological degradation. But this novel form of work soon sprouted a dark side: exploited Uber drivers, neighborhoods ruined by Airbnb, racial discrimination, and rising carbon emissions. Several of the most prominent platforms are now faced with existential crises as they prioritize growth over fairness and long-term viability.
 
Nevertheless, the basic model—a peer-to-peer structure augmented by digital tech—holds the potential to meet its original promises. Based on nearly a decade of pioneering research, After the Gig dives into what went wrong with this contemporary reimagining of labor. The book examines multiple types of data from thirteen cases to identify the unique features and potential of sharing platforms that prior research has failed to pinpoint. Juliet B. Schor presents a compelling argument that we can engineer a reboot: through regulatory reforms and cooperative platforms owned and controlled by users, an equitable and truly shared economy is still possible.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780520325050
Publisher:	University of California Press
Publication date:	09/01/2020
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Juliet B. Schor is an economist and sociologist and a New York Times best-selling author. She teaches at Boston College and is Chair of the Board of Directors of the Better Future Project.

William Attwood-Charles, Mehmet Cansoy, Lindsey “Luka” Carfagna, Samantha Eddy, Connor Fitzmaurice, Isak Ladegaard, and Robert Wengronowitz collaborated on this book.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments 
Note: This Book Has Been Coproduced 

Introduction: The Problem of Work 

1 From the Counterculture to “We Are the Uber of X”
2 Earning on the Platforms
3 Shared, but Unequal
4 “The Shared Economy Is a Lie”
5 Swapping with Snobs 
6 Co-ops, Commons, and Democratic Sharing

Appendix A 
Appendix B 
Appendix C 
Appendix D 
Notes 
References 
Index

Editorial Reviews

06/01/2020

Boston College sociologist Schor (True Wealth) punctures the hype surrounding the “sharing economy” in this lucid and deeply researched study. Highlighting the elitism of even the most well-intentioned ventures, Schor draws on case studies conducted by a team of graduate students to detail, for instance, how a Brooklyn food swap was “undone by a combination of foodie judgmentalism and overt snobbery.” She reveals that for-profit sharing platforms such as TaskRabbit are dominated by well-educated whites looking to supplement their incomes, while full-time workers face a lack of benefits, poor job security, and unpredictable earning streams. She also accuses Uber and Lyft of worsening traffic conditions and increasing pollution by drawing riders from public transportation, and cites studies that Airbnb has contributed to rising rents. Schor identifies some successes, including the gifting platform Freecycle, which she says offers “an environmentally satisfying and convenient way” of solving the problem of overbuying, and holds out hope that sharing platforms can help to address global warming and income inequality. Schor backs her claims with detailed evidence, and identifies specific, actionable reforms. This incisive account makes a perplexing subject easier to grasp. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

"Juliet Schor’s After the Gig: How the Sharing Economy Got Hijacked and How to Win It Back tells this story with much flair and nuance, based on her team’s groundbreaking and extensive research."

American Journal of Sociology

2020-06-30
Noted technology critic, economist, and sociologist Schor examines the appropriation of job-sharing platforms by corporations, to the detriment of working people and consumers alike.

Working with a team of doctoral candidates over a seven-year period, the author documents the rise and fall of what was once a revolutionary idea hatched during the financial collapse of 2008—namely, that “digital technology could solve the problem of work.” One such problem is bad bosses, unneeded when algorithms can do the job of task assignment and supervision; another is the “nine-to-five grind,” obviated by flexible hours; still another is the lack of reasonable pay, which the digital platforms were supposed to remedy by providing close matches in the supply-and-demand realm. Instead, writes Schor, what happened is that the digital platforms fell into the hands of the suits, who increasingly turned a technological revolution into a profit center. “At their worst,” she holds, “the companies have morphed into predatory employers.” Some of those companies are household names—Uber, Lyft, AirBnB—while others might have been. One such case is Zipcar, which rents cars on a short-term basis to city dwellers in need of a run to the grocery or hardware store but who might otherwise have used public transportation, thereby doing nothing to lessen the urban carbon footprint, “a classic case of unintended consequences.” Sharing platforms as originally conceived by techno-libertarians included such things as a community pub, a “time bank” that allowed people to barter services, and a library of sorts that allowed people to borrow tools. Instead, what they’ve devolved to are things like the economic “wild goose chase” by which drivers-for-hire cruise the streets looking for clients and algorithm-driven food-delivery services with punishing fees for restaurateurs. The author, a nimble writer, concludes that “social technology” has to match technology itself, the foremost need being “learning how to share.”

The gig economy is a failure, Schor sharply chronicles—but not one that can’t be redeemed by “cooperation and helping.

Kirkus Reviews

Schor’s case studies skillfully represent the full spectrum of optimism and disenchantment—those previously bullish on being their own boss, who have since been dragged into despair. . . . The takeaway from this book is that a complete reimagining of city governance is required if the sharing economy is ever going to work for the people.” 

Financial Times

"Eye-opening as it deconstructs the promises, and downfalls, of the sharing economy."

Foreword Reviews

"Using an engaging writing style that is accessible to a non-academic audience and to those unfamiliar with the topic, the author brings the reader on a journey along the evolution of the sharing economy, from its roots in the California counterculture through its affirmation in the global capitalist system, to a possible alternative future."

IRL