Gig Economy,  Research,  Technology

Five Contrarian Insights on the Future of Work

In this comprehensive but readable commentary, our Director Jim Stanford challenges five stereotypical claims that are often advanced in debates over the future of work:

 

  1. Work is not disappearing; it can’t.
  2. Technology is not accelerating.
  3. “Gigs” aren’t even new.
  4. Technology is often more about relationships than productivity.
  5. Skills are not a magic bullet.

The commentary was prepared for the My Labour, Our Future conference held in Montreal, Canada to mark the 100th Anniversary of the founding of the International Labour Organization. We thank the organizers and the Atkinson Foundation for permission to repost the paper.

Five Contrarian Insights on the Future of Work

Jim Stanford is Economist and Director of the Centre for Future Work. He divides his time between Sydney, Australia and Vancouver, Canada. Jim is one of Canada’s best-known economic commentators. He served for over 20 years as Economist and Director of Policy with Unifor, Canada’s largest private-sector trade union.