There’s little young people agree with each other about more than the on-demand economy. Want a night out without the hassles of looking for parking and ensuring everyone gets home safe? There’s an app for that. Need to find a hairstylist for your summer wedding in another city? There’s an app for that too.
These new apps, such as the ride-sharing platform Uber and the odd-job finder TaskRabbit, use technology to connect consumers to those who can provide services for a better price and at greater convenience than traditional options. Millennials are the biggest consumers in this new economy, with six out of ten of us saying we rely on apps like Airbnb, Home Away, Uber and Lyft when traveling.
Yet, despite his popularity among Millennials, Socialist Senator Bernie Sanders has “serious problems” with on-demand economy companies like Uber, because they are “unregulated” — code for not under the thumb of outdated government regulations. Similarly, Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been vocal about “cracking down” on what she refers to as the “gig economy.”
Along with makers in city halls and statehouses across the country, efforts to eliminate the on-demand economy would yank the rug from under the feet of many Millennials who earn a living or supplement their income with on-demand jobs.
While Mrs. Clinton has said that companies like Uber don’t provide a “good job” for the future, many young people disagree. According to Generation Opportunity’s March jobs report, 1.7 million 18- to 29-year-olds have given up looking for work and 12.7 percent are unemployed or forced to work part-time jobs. It’s not up to the political elite to write off opportunities that can earn a young person a living to pay off student loans or even a mortgage.
This is actually a fundamental shift in the economy. Contract work has taken off over the past few years, with the number of independent contractors — the kinds primarily employed in the on-demand economy — growing from 10 percent in 2005 to 16 percent today. Non-tech industries including healthcare, manufacturing, and education are also big drivers.
Employers are contracting over hiring full-time staff positions to avoid rising labor costs. Who can blame them when federal and state workplace mandates from the federal government, such as those from the Affordable Care Act, make full-time employees more expensive to retain?
Getting a “good job” will require a different skill set in years to come, and the on-demand economy will help with that adjustment. An expensive four-year degree may not always be the best option. For anyone with an entrepreneurial spirit, the on-demand economy will make it easier than ever to create a side business or create new kinds of full-time work.
Although many politicians don’t see it that way, the on-demand economy has already proven itself to be a trusted, innovative new marketplace, especially for my generation. At a time when young people are still struggling to find work, the best way to help us is for elected officials to remove barriers to this new economy, rather than add news ones.
It doesn’t make sense to ‘diss’ or dismiss a valuable source of jobs, convenience, and opportunity. Young people hold policymakers accountable who pay us lip service with empty promises, then turn a deaf ear to the real concerns of our generation.
