How many people really earn in the economy of

The economy of the "gig economy" has been hailed as a major disruption to the US workforce, as sites like Uber, Airbnb and Etsy offer workers new ways to earn money and flexible hours. However, a new report makes it clear that it is unlikely to soon replace full-time employment.

In a report released Monday, the JPMorgan Chase Institute, a unit of the World Bank, found that the majority of people who derive income from the online platform economy are active only three months or less per year. Average monthly earnings were only $ 828 in 2017, an increase of 20% from 2013, but still represent only enough income to be considered as an additional source. And while revenues from these sites represent a major source of revenue in the months in which they participated, they represent only 20% of the incomes of those who participated in the previous year, highlighting the financial inequalities of Americans.

"It still does not look like a traditional job," said Fiona Greig, director of consumer research for the institute, which examined payments made on 128 online platforms and accounts of $ 2.3 million. distinct users. (The accounts have been made anonymous for research.) "The vast majority of people do this sporadically.

The trend line of monthly earnings was also very different depending on the type of "concert economy" sites reviewed by JPMorgan. The average monthly earnings of workers who used transportation-related applications in a given month (services such as Uber and Lyft transporting people or food delivery services or other items) actually declined. 53% between 2013 and 2017, from $ 1,469 to $ 783. Meanwhile, the same figure has risen by 69% among leasing platforms (sites like Airbnb) and has remained relatively stable among "seller" sites (eBay or Etsy) and those offering services other than transportation. (TaskRabbit a service).

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Greig said that the reason for the lower average monthly earnings among users of transport applications was unclear, but "it could be a drop in wages, or a drop in hours," or number of drivers, that we let's see prices fall. But they do not really know it. "All we see is money coming into people's accounts." JPMorgan has access to the revenue that site users receive, but not their expenses; The study also notes that he can not see how many hours of work drivers.

A drop in the unemployment rate over the same period could also be a factor, said Greig: "More and more people are busy with work and can therefore spend fewer hours trying to make money. .

In an average post, Uber's chief economist, Libby Mishkin, wrote that the study "strengthens[s] what we and many others have been saying for some time … this growth is largely due to people who use platforms like Uber ', but' it fails to analyze the benefits of drivers'.

Mishkin wrote that "if the share of our partners who drive only from time to time has increased over time, it goes without saying that the average monthly (or even weekly or yearly) earnings of each driver would have decrease. The position also highlighted Uber's research done in partnership with economist Alan Krueger University of Princeton who found that average hourly earnings for Uber drivers remained stable.

Lyft also challenged the manner in which the data had been presented.

"The fact that this study did not look at hourly earnings, the indicator of greatest concern to drivers, led to misleading headlines. If that had been the case, the results would have shown stable driver gains in recent years, "said Lyft spokesman Adrian Durbin. "Many more drivers choose to earn with Lyft part-time, often less than ten hours a week" and enjoy flexibility.

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This idea – that more drivers do the work fewer hours because the extra earnings are consistent with the findings of Katherine Abraham, a professor at the University of Maryland and former Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In her research, she said, "In a very short time, we have seen a sharp increase in the proportion of drivers combining income and wages and driving income, which suggests that it was complementary.

Meanwhile, Greig suggested that the sharp rise in profits among users of "leasing" sites like Airbnb could be due to increased demand. People, she said, are now "renting all sorts of things – including parking spaces – and with this increase in demand, we're seeing more people organizing their lives to generate income."

She said that the combination of properties offered could also change the numbers, as more and more people become more comfortable with renting luxury vacation homes or other higher income properties. thanks to shared economy sites.

JPMorgan Chase's data can be directed to its client base (which is slightly younger, more masculine, and more likely to be based in the western United States) and is, of course, limited to revenue from online sites that can be identified Account. (Abraham notes, for example, that other informal sources of income, such as counseling or personal services, may be even more important.) But by examining the actual billings, the study avoids some confusion is really an alternative work. "One of the things we know is that it's very difficult to measure this activity," said Abraham.

The real change may take a long time to come not only for employment, but also for the disruptions of the industry. While the taxi and limousine industries have been clearly shaken by Uber and Lyft, "it does not really happen in other sectors," she said. "Although we have seen incredible attempts by Uber to walk dogs or Uber for massages, we do not see any level of participation. [by workers] this would suggest that these platforms are starting to disrupt many industries.

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