Gigs, Hustles, & Temps: the expansion and effects of precarious work – and what to do about it
Gigs, Hustles, & Temps by Jason Foster informs and warns about how work in Canada is being systematically degraded, who is doing it, and how this is leading to growing inequality. Foster sets out two goals for the book: the first, to put “the full scope of the problem of precarious work out in the open, and lay bare the negative consequences it reaps”; the second, “to create space for better possibilities for work, for a way to combat precarity and reduce inequality.” Foster writes accessibly and engagingly about these issues, with the clear purpose of reaching broader audiences. A professor of labour himself, he notes that “Despite its ubiquity, almost no one outside of academia is writing about precarious work.”
Gigs, Hustles, & Temps reviews information and issues including:
- The rise and causes of precarious work;
- The different forms and features of precarious work;
- Who are precarious workers, including looking at industries and occupations more likely to involve precarious work and noting that the patterns of precarious work parallel the fissures of inequality in society broadly;
- Working conditions in the gig economy; and
- The health and social consequences of precarity.
The concluding chapter points us forward, asking “What do we do about it?” Foster writes that a multi-pronged approach is necessary. We need to improve working conditions and deincentivize precarious employment relationships, and we need to build stronger safety nets. Two ways to improve work are discussed. The first is to advocate for governments to enact policies and regulations that restrict and/or deincentivize precarious employment relationships. This includes trying to expand the scope of existing employment standards to include more precarious workers. The second is through worker mobilization and action. Foster notes the creation of unions specifically for groups of precarious workers and alternative forms of unions providing assistance and advice outside of the formal model of labour relations.
Gigs, Hustles, & Temps concludes inspiringly, calling for each reader to “See [precarious work] for what it is and decide what you can do about it.”
Foster is the director of the Parkland Institute and a professor of human resources and labour relations at Athabasca University. The book is published by James Lorimer & Company Ltd.