The social consequences of platform self-employment

The modern labor market is undergoing transformation under the influence of accelerated development of digital technologies and the introduction of digital platforms. A digital platform is an information system that brings together various types of actors (representatives of government agencies, commercial and non-commercial organizations, individuals, etc.) and allows them to exchange digital products, services, and information in the digital space. Platform employment is a flexible form of work organization in which interaction between actors takes place through such digital platforms. The most common types of platform employment are online freelancing, delivery, logistics, and education. Modern self-employed workers have partially or completely transferred some of their work functions to digital platforms. It is important to note that not all self-employed people work on digital platforms. Platform employment includes not only the self-employed, but also other categories of workers. The growth of platform self-employment has numerous social consequences, both positive and negative. These include a decline in social protection, worsening working conditions, growing inequality, and a lack of job stability. This article is based on the results of a survey of self-employed people who carry out their professional activities through digital platforms and have had their first experience of analyzing and evaluating their professional experience in the digital ecosystem of self-employment. The main conclusion of the study is that most self-employed people (62.32%) agree with the statement that favorable conditions for professional activity have been created in Russia today. The main social consequences of platform-based self-employment can be summarized as follows. There are more women than men among platform-based self-employed people (70.43% and 29.57%). The average age of self-employed people is 35. The main types of activities for the platform self-employed people surveyed are information services (23.1), household services (12.5), and educational services (11.7). Self-employed people actively use digital platforms and services in their professional activities (52.49%). The main digital services for them are social networks, video hosting, messengers, email, and communication (MTS, Beeline, Megafon, VKontakte, Odnoklassniki, Telegram, Rutube, Mail.ru, Yandex Mail, etc.) (73.42%). The main advantages of using digital platforms and services compared to traditional ones (without using the Internet) are convenience and 24/7 availability (68.77%), time savings (55.48%), and the ability to work remotely (44.85%). Self-employed people lack the following digital resources: for finding customers and clients (42.75%), educational courses and training on business development (3 5.69%), platforms for drawing up and signing contracts online, and services for promoting goods and services through social networks (20.78% each). At the same time, most self-employed people (64.12%) do not use any social support measures but need the following types of support: financial (subsidies, grants, etc.) (16.94%), rental of workspace (9.97%), assistance in online promotion (8.97%), educational programs, training, tax breaks and deductions (8.64% each).

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