Answers remain scarce as Canadian labour grapples with Uber, Airbnb and the ‘gig economy.’

Source: How Do Workers Organize When Their Boss Is an App? | The Tyee

Whether drivers for ride services such as Uber and Lyft are employees or independent contractors has become an important issue for city administrators, labor policymakers, and the businesses and drivers themselves. But an increasing number of voices argue that the drivers are neither, that some work relationships arranged through digital platforms in the so-called gig …

Source: Uber business model does not justify a new ‘independent worker’” category | Economic Policy Institute

The Uber model just doesn’t work for other industries. The price points always fail — and that’s a good thing

Source: Good riddance, gig economy: Uber, Ayn Rand and the awesome collapse of Silicon Valley’s dream of destroying your job

The fact that your company gives you good free lunches and shuttles to work and nice paycheck does not change the fact that you could get more by negotiating together, as a union. Anyone smart enough to get a job at Google is smart enough to grasp these facts.

Source: Tech Workers Should Unionize

Answers remain scarce as Canadian labour grapples with Uber, Airbnb and the ‘gig economy.’

Source: How Do Workers Organize When Their Boss Is an App? | Portside

41st Annual Convention – Friday, May 6

AFM Local 802, 322 West 48 Street (between 8th and 9th Ave.)

Unmasking the Gig Economy: Helpful or Harmful?

PANELISTS
Michelle Chen is a contributing writer for The Nation and contributing editor at In These Times and Dissent magazine, and an associate editor at CultureStrike.
Bhairavi Desai is a founding member and Executive Director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance.
Sara Horowitz is the founder and Executive Director of the Freelancers Union.
Katie Unger writes for City Limits. She is a former Deputy Commissioner of the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit.

MODERATOR
Bob Hennelly is an award winning investigative reporter. He currently works for CBS News, City and State, and Salon.

COMMUNICATOR OF THE YEAR AWARD to HAMILTON NOLAN, a leader of the successful organizing drive at Gawker.

Presentation of contest winners.

AFTERNOON WORKSHOP on using your smartphone as a communicating tool conducted by Liz McKenna, Communications Director of NYC District Council of Carpenters.

Breakfast and lunch will be served.

To register go to Annual Convention page.

Registration – 8:30 a.m.  Business meeting – 9:30 a.m.  Panel – 10:00 a.m.

Writers Guild of America announce editorial workers at Gawker have agreed a union contract setting minimum salaries and guarantees 3% raises each year

Source: Gawker employees bargain first union contract at a digital media company

Uber in Mother Jones

Is Uber ripping off its Drivers? The woman who beat Starbucks and FedEx in court says yes.

Uber is gearing up to launch a standalone app for UberEATS, the company’s prepared food delivery service, in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Austin, San..

Source: Uber’s Standalone Food Delivery App Is Coming To The U.S.