Inspired by American writer, Gertrude Stein’s, salon talks in
Paris where she hosted the likes of Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso, and Scott
Fitzgerald, for hearty and robust discussion in her home, I thought it fitting
given I had moved into a beautiful place in Lower Pac Heights in San
Francisco, to replicate my own version of the salon series.
Three good friends in PR tech came along on Saturday night and we
kicked off with the following topic: A moveable workforce in
a disruptive economy still ruled by legacy.
The aim of the evening was to allow candid conversation in a
private setting, and thus I've omitted parts, but in
general my talk covered:
Despite the ‘disruptive economy’ the way our bosses see the
workforce, is still to catch-up. Our employers, and peers around us, are still
living with the mindset that a ‘permanent employee’ is best.
To be permanent comes with fitting in and has its organizational
perks such as health and dental benefits, vacation and sick leave, and
oftentimes, share options.
Permanent is optimal and yet there remains a disconnect, i.e. more
and more of these ‘disruptive’ companies want a disposable workforce where they
do not really need to invest in the employee, and yet they demand our
loyalty.
So we turn to the 'Gig economy' as it’s been coined in recent
media articles from top outlets such as the Wall Street Journal and The
Guardian.
The article in The Guardian The
‘gig economy’ is coming. What will it mean for work?, written by Arun Sundararajan, a Professor from
New York University said:
Today, more and more of us choose,
instead, to make our living working gigs rather than full time. To the
optimists, it promises a future of empowered entrepreneurs and boundless
innovation. To the naysayers, it portends a dystopian future of disenfranchised
workers hunting for their next wedge of piecework.
Hillary
Clinton warned of the downsides of this informal workforce in a
recent economic speech, including the potential erosion of workplace
protections, citing Uber as a case in point.
As a contractor, it is on me to provide healthcare and dental.
This is where being a permanent employee would have done me multiple favors.
Professions are changing drastically in scope and the way we work
is continuing to be redefined. In the PR and journalism profession alone - we
have had a complete overhaul on what is valued and what’s not.
The New York
Professor says:
There’s definitely a sense of freedom
about being your own boss. With some planning and self-discipline, you can
achieve a better work-life balance. But there’s also something comforting and
settling about a steady pay check, fixed work hours and company-provided
benefits.
It’s harder to plan your life longer term – such as buying a house
- when you don’t know how much money you’re going to be making from one quarter
to the next.
After working seven continual months as a contractor without
taking any vacation or sick days, the end
of my consulting gig this month signals time for a much needed rethink on next
steps and time for respite. And this break of mine, of course, will be unpaid -
as unlike a permanent employee – I do not get paid for vacation leave.
But sometimes, and very oftentimes – one has to ‘disrupt’
themselves by doing things such
as fly to the other side of the world, and spend time among other cultures and
ways of life, before we can make sense of and find our place in the
disruption at home.
Picture: Gertrude Stein is pictured at the Paris residence she lived in for 33 years, and which became a salon for the artists and writers of the era.
