Abstract
The "gig economy" provides for a new style of employment where workers (referred to as "giggers") sustain themselves by performing a number of "gigs" on a freelance basis (often for several different employers). This type of work entails much freedom for the "gigger" who is, in theory, free to choose whenever and wherever they wish to work. However, there are in many cases still a blurred line between whether or not "giggers" should be considered "self-employed" or "employees" and in some cases working in a "gig economy" entails working for low wages, with many "giggers" working long hours. This has given rise to a new phenomenon called "gig patients", entailing "giggers" who cannot afford to take time off to seek medical or dental assistance until it is absolutely necessary, by which time treatments needed are often extensive and expensive. These patients will put themselves in debt with no feasible way of paying their medical bills in full, which in turn affects the welfare system. Thus, this chapter seeks to investigate what the wider ramifications that "gig patients" could have to the welfare society and the future of labor. The chapter discusses and proposes various ways in dealing with the "gig patient" situation and concludes that there is a need to establish a community of practice, a clear legal framework and fair standards for the "gig economy".
Proponents of high-deductible health plans argue that by holding patients financially responsible through high copayments and deductibles, it helps decrease "moral hazard" by stymieing detrimental behavior by patients that would otherwise waste health-care resources and drive up the overall societal costs. This chapter investigates the wider ramifications labor advocacy group of people could have to the welfare society and the future of labor, and the possible courses of actions that can be taken to deal with the emergent situation of "gig patients". There will be a need for labor unions to stay more attuned to the developments in the digital space and the "gig economy", as this remains a weak spot for many unions. The labor market enforcement agencies could prioritize the most affected places while also maximizing their impact, and hopefully causing ripple effects to surrounding areas until these agencies have mustered enough resources to gain a wider geographic coverage.