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Introduction
Introduction
Economics is a branch of social science focused on the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services..
Real World Examples
Real World Examples
Toronto Rent Control
Toronto Rent Control
November 2018 new policies
No price control on newly built residences
If the stock was built before November 2018, renters can only raise rent by 1.2%-1.6% per year still (unless appealed)
Made easier for rental apartments to turn into sellable condominiums
Impact: 0.6% vacancy rate -> 6% vacancy rate
Agricultural Subsidies
Agricultural Subsidies
The European Economic Union has 27 countries
40% of agriculture is subsidised
To put into context: A poor Indian lives on $3/day; A Scottish cow is subsidised more than $3/day
Impact: Keeps farmers from poor countries poor, as they don't have access to the same subsidies
American Ethanol 2010
American Ethanol 2010
The United States didn't want to be dependent on foreign oil, so the government subsidised corn
Corn produces Ethanol, which is a biofuel
The government required that 10% of fuel consisted of ethanol
Impact: Farmers stopped growing other grains, so food prices went up by over 100% from Autumn 2010-Spring 2011
The Gig Economy: Pros & (a lot of) Cons
The Gig Economy: Pros & (a lot of) Cons
Note: this is an opinion piece (editorial)
What is the Gig Economy?
What is the Gig Economy?
“A gig economy, also known as the sharing economy or access economy, relies heavily on temporary and part-time positions filled by independent contractors and freelancers rather than full-time permanent employees.” - Investopedia
Pros of the Gig Economy
Pros of the Gig Economy
I think it’s quite obvious that the gig economy boomed during COVID-19, when people were forced to work from home and shop online. It has risen in popularity from there. The gig economy is basically self employing, since workers have so much freedom. They choose their own hours (i.e. dog walkers), workplace (i.e. freelance software development at home), and whether or not the job is a side hustle. The gig economy is cool and all, but there are problems. Many of them.
Cons of the Gig Economy
Cons of the Gig Economy
If you consider things logically, many gig economy workers are basically small business owners. That’s a lot of logistics, a lot of scheduling, and a very rational fear of losing the job. Picture getting a comp sci degree at UofT. Upon graduating, instead of securing a job, you’re frantically throwing graphic design elements onto Canva and figuring out how to crop a photo of your face to minimise ugliness (definitely not your expertise). You then have to take a marketing course because the designs you posted on fiverr.com to market yourself clearly aren’t working. You’re going into more debt, you’ve stopped showering, you’re trying to kickstart commissions to no avail, you’re forgetting to spend time with your girlfriend, you’re…
TL;DR Juggling all of those tasks can result in terrible work-life balance. Managing things of logistical nature (and just about everything else) is not everyone’s strength.
Let’s say it is. Then, the individual has to deal with not having paid holiday or sick leave. Emergencies happen to everyone, right? Well for many participants of the gig economy, it’s crucial that they must happen a lot less; there is no back-up plan. If you break your back and stop mowing lawns for a month, a lot of angry rich people will have the cancel service number on speed dial. What’s worse is that you might not even have health insurance (this is especially the case with independent contractors). Workers rights where??
The next hurdle is the one about wages. Gig economy workers are much more prone to be impacted by changes in supply and demand. It’s absurdly easy for little modern artist Timmy to get overshadowed by modern artist Dimmy (a make-believe Kardashian), even if they’re slapping on the same purple circles onto the same blank canvases. In fact, if 100-mil-followers-on-ig Dimmy was copying 10-followers-on-ig Timmy, is Timmy really in much of a position to speak out and be heard? Correct. Gig economy workers rarely have bargaining power. That’s the same reasoning for why Uber and DoorDash and Grubhub and other companies can magically brush off criticisms for their low wages. Yay for the gig economy I guess.
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