Introduction
The 1987 Constitution of the Philippines guarantees the protection of the Filipino labourer. Workers are guaranteed the following rights: the right to conduct collective bargaining or negotiation with management; to engage in peaceful concerted activities, which includes joining strikes in accordance to law; to enjoy the security of tenure, and the right to work under humane conditions. (Philippine Constitution, 1987)
However, technology opens new avenues in the ways one can gain employment. The World Bank has discussed how technology is blurring the boundaries of the firm, which is evident in the rise of platform marketplaces. Using digital technologies, entrepreneurs are now creating global, platform-based businesses that are different from the traditional production process. As well, more and more people are finding work through these platform-based marketplaces (World Bank, 2019).
There already has been previous research on this subject, which includes the job quality of work in the gig economy (Wood, 2018), the characteristics of those who are in the gig economy (Lepanjuuri, 2018); the applicability of applying existing employment regulations (Stewart and Sandford, 2017), and the future of employment and labour law protections where the gig economy is concerned (Lobel, 2016).
This work aims to answer the following questions:
What is the gig economy and how does it work?
Is there an employer-employee relationship in the gig economy?
How can the workers be protected?
Should gig work be regulated?
Should gig workers have the right to representation, or can they form or join unions?
Also included in this research are the benefits and disadvantages of the gig economy, as well as the “myth of flexibility” in the gig economy.