Institute of Sociology NASU

UKRAINIAN GIGONOMY: TRANSFORMATION OF EMPLOYMENT, RISKS AND PROSPECTS

stmm. 2021 (4): 43-72

DOI https://doi.org/10.15407/sociology2021.04.043

OLENA IVANENKO, Candidate of Sciences in Philosophy, Senior Research Fellow at the Department Economic Sociology, Institute of Sociology, NAS of Ukraine (12, Shovkovychna St., Kyiv, 01021)

olenaivanenko@gmail.com

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3635-1078

The article deals with the transformation of the employment structure and gigonomics. Today, such economic model is becoming the dominant option of choice, which is working in almost all the spheres and sectors of the economy and is increasingly conquering the world. The employment of the population represents the general structure of the economy and changes with it, reflecting the state of development of the country. Structural economic changes have led to a change in the usual forms and types of employment of the population. The market economy served as an impetus for a change in the structure of employment in the former Soviet society, and global economic processes have unified these changes. Today, the dominant trend is the shift of the main vector of economic activity from the sphere of production to the sphere of service (in various industries), small and medium-sized businesses, the applying of the principles of freelancing and outsourcing. There is also a decrease in employment in the fields of science, education, medicine; the science loses its prestige and intrinsic value, scientific knowledge is devalued, and intellectual work is increasingly concentrating in the field of computer technology, creating a huge number of new specialties and professions that require different fundamental training, high qualifications and a large number of work places. The standard principles of organizing the work process are giving way to non-standard ones; preference is given to freedom of choice, flexibility and independence etc. The digital economy and work on digital platforms are relevant, modern and promising, but they are not devoid of certain risks and dangers. Platform employment is precarious, unstable, socially and legally vulnerable, although in developed countries almost a third of the working-age population is employed in the gig economy today. In the article, there are investigated the peculiarities of Ukrainian gigonomics based on the materials of a survey conducted by the author among gig workers in Kiev — taxi drivers of online services (Uber, Uklon, Bolt) and food delivers (Glovo, Bolt Food, Rocket). Besides, there are clarified main advantages and disadvantages of such work and there are described its threats and prospects.

Keywords: gigonomics, employment, freelancing, platform economy, digital technologies, “uberization”

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Received 29.10.2021