Friday, October 28, 2016

The employment tribunal ruling that Uber drivers are employees rather than being self-employed sub-contractors has major implications for the development of the labour market. Much evidence suggests that there has been a large growth of employment in the-so-called 'gig economy', where a firm puts workers in direct contact with clients to undertake specific one-off tasks (or 'gigs'). The firm acting as co-ordinator between workers and clients arranges the gig - and is often assisted by technology in doing this - and takes a commission for doing so. Hence, in the case of Uber, a passenger uses her digital device to arrange a journey, and Uber's software is used to find a possible driver. Till now, the drivers have been considered to be self-employed.

Working in the gig economy offers advantages and disadvantages. Work arrangements can be very flexible. But as self-employed workers, many of the protections available to employees have been absent. So, for example, gig economy workers cannot access sick pay unless they make insurance arrangements themselves - and there are moral hazard reasons why this might be difficult. Likewise they are likely to have to make their own pension arrangements. If they are available for work at a time when no work is offered, they may in effect be paid below the minimum wage. For some workers, involvement in the gig economy supplements a more regular job. For others, the main source of income is the gig economy. And for this latter group, the lack of job security can be a problem.

It is, however, a problem not only for the individual worker, but for the economy more generally. If workers do not have a long term engagement with an employer, they are likely to lack the structures that have conventionally accompanied a job - in particular training, development and progression. While some parts of the gig economy involve highly skilled work - freelance journalism, or business consultancy, for example - others less so - and here driving is a classic example. In the absence of a career structure, workers will lack the opportunity to develop to their full potential, and, for the economy as a whole, this creates a productivity gap. If the future of work is increasingly characterised by a looser set of ties between employers and employees, institutions other than the employer will be needed to provide the mechanisms that ensure development, progression and productivity enhancement. Membership organisations may be one way in which this role can be fulfilled. Unions are one example, accreditation bodies are another.

The finding of the employment tribunal will raise Uber's costs and this in turn will diminish its competitive advantage. If Uber can survive this, then its employees will benefit from the new employment security that they will enjoy. Otherwise, Uber may not be able to operate in the UK.

In this digital age, however, solutions similar to Uber, possibly operated from other legal jurisdictions, would be sure to emerge to fill the gap. While the tribunal ruling shifts the responsibility for employment security onto the employer in this case - and while many other gig economy businesses will need to consider the ruling carefully - a more comprehensive solution may be to look to other institutions than the employer to provide workers with security, development, progression and productivity enhancement.

Friday, October 07, 2016

Following an encouraging showing in July, the latest industrial production figures, up to August of this year, indicate a fall in production over the month. Year-on-year, the data show an increase of some 0.8%. Nevertheless, analysing these data using my neural network forecaster continues to show that a dip in the data is likely over the coming months.

The outcome of Brexit negotiations is, of course, as yet unknown, and the reliability of any forecast of industrial production in this context is likely to be unusually limited.