Rights for Gig Economy Workers

In a changing economy, we need to be vigilant about how workers’ rights are impacted and eroded by policy loopholes and grey areas, especially when “disruptive” technologies enter the labour market.

VICTORY! Read the story of the Foodora Couriers' big win at the OLRB!

The ever-evolving tech industry has brought in sweeping changes to how regular people live, work, and play in a very short time. Apps and online platforms provide a dynamic solution to the demand for things like vehicles for hire, short-term rentals, deliveries, and more. However, these “disruptors” change more than our behavior; they have created an on-demand or “just in time” workforce that operates outside of existing workplace regulations.

Temp agency work, a classic type of gig work, is still a huge problem. Temporary employees are not covered under the same labour laws as permanent employees. Worse, temp agencies are notorious for being difficult to find and hold accountable - and the companies that hire through these third parties are able to take advantage of legal loopholes to exploit workers. The five temp worker deaths at Fiera Foods provide an unfortunate example of this reality (read coverage via Star reporter Sara Mojtehedzadeh).

This is known as the gig economy: work that is procured through a labour market mediated by a digital platform. The gig economy operates in legal grey zones. Workers have limited social and labour protections, and in fact, their classification as workers or employees is often in dispute. Yet the size of the gig economy is growing in scope and in scale, all over the world.

It is difficult to get an accurate number of how many Canadians are employed through gig jobs. Creators of these platforms would like us to think that users are primarily individuals who are supplementing their income, but increasingly, people are using them as a primary source of income. Are these not workers? Are these platforms, which profit from this work, not employers under the law?

Labour Challenges

Gig workers are often dispersed and lacking a central, brick-and-mortar location where they can be identified and organized
When gig workers are classified as independent contractors, they are not subject to the Employment Standards Act and their organizations cannot be union certified
Disruptive technologies present new challenges to lawmakers who may be hesitant to restrict innovation/business, or who are uncertain about how to move forward with no precedents

Labour Solutions

Fight the misclassification of workers through legal channels
Organize gig workers
Advocate for legal and regulatory reform municipally and provincially

Organizing

	Temporary Worker Safety at Fiera Foods Fiera Foods is an industrial bakery that does billions of dollars' worth of business every year - and yet, since 1999, five workers have been killed while working at Fiera and its subsidiaries. Every worker who has died has been a temporary employee - some for over a decade - and therefore not subject to many of Ontario's labour laws. We're demanding stronger legal protections for temp agency workers and a criminal investigation into Fiera Foods. The Ford Government must take immediate action to prevent employers from treating workers’ lives as disposable. Send a message to the Premier right now by signing this petition.
	Sidewalk Labs Waterfront Redevelopment Sidewalk Labs, a Google subsidiary, is moving forward on an agreement with Waterfront Toronto to redevelop a 12-acre site in Toronto’s east waterfront. Sidewalk claims that they are “reimagining cities to improve quality of life” and aims to achieve “new standards of sustainability, affordability, mobility, and economic opportunity.” However, there are concerns about how corporate-driven urban tech will disrupt our principles of freedom, inclusion, democratic control, sustainable development, strong public services and a healthy workforce. Labour Council compiled a list of some crucial outstanding questions and submitted it to Toronto City Council. We are pleased that the final agreement between Sidewalk and Waterfront has significantly limited the proposed scope of the corporation and that the government agency will lead all digital governance and privacy matters on data collected at Quayside.
	UBER Drivers United – United Food and Commercial Workers UFCW launched their GTA-wide UBER organizing campaign in June 2019, beginning with UBER Black and airport drivers. With an estimated 90,000 private transportation drivers in Toronto and ongoing regulatory battles in jurisdictions across the country, this is an important opportunity to empower workers and make a positive impact. The principal demands are: Respect Wages Health and Safety Unfair Ratings System Staging and Airport Queue Lack of Pension or Benefits
	Foodsters United – Canadian Union of Postal Workers Great news: the Foodsters won an important victory at the Ontario Labour Relations Board to be appropriately classed as dependent contractors. This landmark decision will impact gig economy workers in different sectors going forward. CUPW launched a campaign to organize Foodora couriers in May 2019. Couriers work from personal vehicles or bikes and, while the company misclassified them as “independent contractors,” they have been solely responsible for the wear and tear on their vehicles and on their bodies. They work in all weather conditions and have no access to bathrooms or indoor break spaces. They are fighting for: Respect Health and Safety Fair Compensation Currently, Foodsters United is awaiting the unsealing of their ballots from the August 2019 vote to form a union.
	Fairbnb Coalition Fairbnb is a Canada-wide initiative to raise consciousness about the ethical and practical challenges of the short-term rental economy, and to challenge legislators to do more. So-called “home sharing” platforms like Airbnb have put a squeeze on the already-strained long-term rental market in major cities everywhere. The company itself profits enormously and, because it is internet-based, is not subject to fair taxation. The practice of renting private residences has created “ghost hotels” that are operating outside of zoning and hospitality legislation. The coalition includes labour groups alongside industry, property owners and renters, and other concerned citizens. The campaign launched in 2016 to fight for fair regulation. It has successfully advocated for regulatory change in a number of jurisdictions including Toronto, but the fight is far from over.

Partners

Good Jobs For All coalition (visit website)
$15 and Fairness (visit 15andfairness.org/not_one_more_death)

Resources

Statement: Fix Labour Laws and Employment Standards (March 2015)
The Changing Workplace Review Final Report (access PDF)
"Undercover in Temp Nation" investigation by Star reporter Sara Mojtehedzadeh (September 8, 2017)
CONDITIONS OF WORK AND EMPLOYMENT SERIES No. 94 "Organizing on-demand:
Representation, voice, and collective bargaining in the gig economy," by Hannah Johnston and Chris Land-Kazlauskas (retrieve here)