A new report by Bankrate.com found that almost half of Americans have a side job to earn extra income. On average they worked an additional 12 hours per week in order to earn an extra $1,122.
30% of those Americans who have side jobs need the money in order to pay for basic living expenses.
The “gig economy” is simply a way for the capitalist class to have American workers work more hours while not providing the benefits afforded by traditional employment. This study reveals that a large percentage of workers who have jobs on the side are doing so to meet basic expenses, and are therefore working out of necessity.
According to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) employers are required to pay workers time and a half for all hours worked over the standard 40-hour work week. Through the so-called “gig-economy” employers are able to circumvent this requirement by having workers classified as independent contractors who are working an entirely separate job. The classification of workers as independent contractors also allows employers to avoid providing benefits.
While the corporate media would like to portray this type of labor as being “flexible”, it is merely advantageous and profitable to the working class. The working class, through a proper understanding of Marxism-Leninism, must see through the deceptive tactics of the capitalist class to reveal the “gig-economy” for what it truly is.