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After the Gig: How the Sharing Economy Got Hijacked and How to Win It Back
The dark side of the gig economy (Uber, Airbnb, etc.) and how to make it equitable for the users and workers most exploited.
When the “sharing economy” launched a decade ago, proponents claimed that it would transform the experience of work—giving earners flexibility, autonomy, and a decent income. It was touted as a cure for social isolation and rampant ecological degradation. But this novel form of work soon sprouted a dark side: exploited Uber drivers, neighborhoods ruined by Airbnb, racial discrimination, and rising carbon emissions. Several of the most prominent platforms are now faced with existential crises as they prioritize growth over fairness and long-term viability.
Nevertheless, the basic model—a peer-to-peer structure augmented by digital tech—holds the potential to meet its original promises. Based on nearly a decade of pioneering research, After the Gig dives into what went wrong with this contemporary reimagining of labor. The book examines multiple types of data from thirteen cases to identify the unique features and potential of sharing platforms that prior research has failed to pinpoint. Juliet B. Schor presents a compelling argument that we can engineer a reboot: through regulatory reforms and cooperative platforms owned and controlled by users, an equitable and truly shared economy is still possible.
When the “sharing economy” launched a decade ago, proponents claimed that it would transform the experience of work—giving earners flexibility, autonomy, and a decent income. It was touted as a cure for social isolation and rampant ecological degradation. But this novel form of work soon sprouted a dark side: exploited Uber drivers, neighborhoods ruined by Airbnb, racial discrimination, and rising carbon emissions. Several of the most prominent platforms are now faced with existential crises as they prioritize growth over fairness and long-term viability.
Nevertheless, the basic model—a peer-to-peer structure augmented by digital tech—holds the potential to meet its original promises. Based on nearly a decade of pioneering research, After the Gig dives into what went wrong with this contemporary reimagining of labor. The book examines multiple types of data from thirteen cases to identify the unique features and potential of sharing platforms that prior research has failed to pinpoint. Juliet B. Schor presents a compelling argument that we can engineer a reboot: through regulatory reforms and cooperative platforms owned and controlled by users, an equitable and truly shared economy is still possible.
279 pages, Hardcover
Published September 1, 2020
18 people are currently reading
334 people want to read
About the author
Juliet B. Schor
34 books168 followersJuliet Schor’s research over the last ten years has focussed on issues pertaining to trends in work and leisure, consumerism, the relationship between work and family, women's issues and economic justice. Schor's latest book is Born to Buy: The Commercialized Child and the New Consumer Culture (Scribner 2004). She is also author of The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure and The Overspent American: Upscaling, Downshifting and the New Consumer. She has co-edited, The Golden Age of Capitalism: Reinterpreting the Postwar Experience, The Consumer Society Reader, and Sustainable Planet: Solutions for the 21st Century. Earlier in her career, her research focussed on issues of wages, productivity, and profitability. She also did work on the political economy of central banking. Schor is currently is at work on a project on the commercialization of childhood, and is beginning research on environmental sustainability and its relation to Americans’ lifestyles.
Schor is a board member and co-founder of the Center for a New American Dream, an organization devoted to transforming North American lifestyles to make them more ecologically and socially sustainable. She also teaches periodically at Schumacher College, an International Center for Ecological Studies based in south-west England.
from http://www2.bc.edu/~schorj/default.html
Schor is a board member and co-founder of the Center for a New American Dream, an organization devoted to transforming North American lifestyles to make them more ecologically and socially sustainable. She also teaches periodically at Schumacher College, an International Center for Ecological Studies based in south-west England.
from http://www2.bc.edu/~schorj/default.html
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
April 5, 2021
This is an important book. The only flaw is that the title is a bit off: Schorr is quite good it telling how sharing platforms have been hijacked but not so good at telling how to win them back. I'm not sure they can be at this point. The basic game played by Uber et al is devilish enough to make John D. Rockefeller blush: ignore pertinent regulatory rules, use venture money to subsidize prices to capture market share, push benefit and other social costs onto workers and taxpayers, and rely primarily on secondary rather than dependent workers so that paying a living wage isn't necessary. Of course consumers like it; it's cheaper and more convenient than legitimate businesses who play by the rules and pay their workers living wages with benefits. Those are the jobs that are being lost as the sharing platforms rise. When regulators and legislators try to rein in the platforms, their lobbyists can then call on consumers for support. As Schorr points out, Uber has more lobbyists than Amazon, Microsoft and Facebook combined, which is one of the reasons I worry more about the sharing platforms than I do about big tech. And I worry a lot about big tech.
August 29, 2024
This is thoughtful book, not as analytical and thus as forceful as it might have been, but excellent all the same. Schor's book from a decade before, True Wealth/i>, was a thorough analysis of what she called the "Business As Usual" model; while her arguments didn't exactly hew to standard environmental and social democratic complaints about global finance capitalism, with its many ecological and sociological costs (declining wages, environmental exploitation, community disruption, etc.), she was able to make arrive at mostly their same conclusions through her close reading of American's work and consumptive habits, and the damage they do. In TW, the savior would be the internet, the DIY possibilities of crowd-sourced and mutually shared "plenitude." Working hours would drop as people realized their ability to achieve material goals without depending upon, and without being slaves to propping up, complex and expensive and individualizing systems of extraction and production. It was a techno-utopian book, but in some ways it came close. I've used it in classes before, but was bothered by what I saw as its boosterism. In After the Gig, Schor issues her apology (sort of), and I find it an essential addition to what came before.
AG makes central use of personal stories of workers in the gig economy, with the result that some of the hard-nose economic analysis is sacrificed. But perhaps that's justified, because her whole argument begins with a recognition that the techno-utopian impulse took root because of the way advances in online commerce and personal computing suggested to people a way to fulfill their better environmental and social ideals. Stop wasting food; donate it! Stop hiring expensive laborers in their sheltered positions; crowd-source your skills! The app economy--AirBnB, Uber, and all the rest--had genuine idealistic foundations. But of course, what was built upon those foundations didn't achieve those goals. Schor thoroughly demonstrates that while upper-middle-class drivers and renters and others enjoyed the supplemental income which the sharing economy provides, in almost every other case (food-swapping apps, donating unused food to organizations or families in need, are a notable exception) the sharing economy has massively underperformed, and had real negative consequences along the way (mostly because most of these platform designers and users failed to understand that supposed increases in efficiency of use doesn't actually decrease overall use; instead, it makes room for expanded capacity--people who didn't own a second car buying one so as to be an Uber driver, people who rather than selling a home hold on to it as an AirBnB, forcing buyers to go elsewhere--and even more use).
Schor ends the book expressing hope that a genuine cooperative model might be able to make use of the lessons of the gig experience, and find ways to make her hoped for DIY, sharing future a reality after all. But mostly this book, filled with many thoughtful observations about class, social hierarchies, wage dependency, and more, is a needed splash of cold water in the face of those who see their phones as the future.
AG makes central use of personal stories of workers in the gig economy, with the result that some of the hard-nose economic analysis is sacrificed. But perhaps that's justified, because her whole argument begins with a recognition that the techno-utopian impulse took root because of the way advances in online commerce and personal computing suggested to people a way to fulfill their better environmental and social ideals. Stop wasting food; donate it! Stop hiring expensive laborers in their sheltered positions; crowd-source your skills! The app economy--AirBnB, Uber, and all the rest--had genuine idealistic foundations. But of course, what was built upon those foundations didn't achieve those goals. Schor thoroughly demonstrates that while upper-middle-class drivers and renters and others enjoyed the supplemental income which the sharing economy provides, in almost every other case (food-swapping apps, donating unused food to organizations or families in need, are a notable exception) the sharing economy has massively underperformed, and had real negative consequences along the way (mostly because most of these platform designers and users failed to understand that supposed increases in efficiency of use doesn't actually decrease overall use; instead, it makes room for expanded capacity--people who didn't own a second car buying one so as to be an Uber driver, people who rather than selling a home hold on to it as an AirBnB, forcing buyers to go elsewhere--and even more use).
Schor ends the book expressing hope that a genuine cooperative model might be able to make use of the lessons of the gig experience, and find ways to make her hoped for DIY, sharing future a reality after all. But mostly this book, filled with many thoughtful observations about class, social hierarchies, wage dependency, and more, is a needed splash of cold water in the face of those who see their phones as the future.
March 4, 2023
Solid and nuanced sociological analysis of the gig / sharing economy and the potential that still exists to actually benefit workers (while also enumerating various pitfalls that reproduce inequality)
August 10, 2020
I was hoping for a book that might give the people the power to be independent, but rapidly it became obvious that a governmental bureaucrat can only preach obedience to the leaders and, what else?, pay your taxes because Schor wants a bigger house and for that the reader has to work harder.
January 4, 2024
Firstly, this did not need to be a book. It could very well have been a research paper coupled with a literature review. Nonetheless, I appreciate that it was made into a book because otherwise I would probably not have picked it up and read it.
Which would have been a pity, because After the Gig: How the Sharing Economy Got Hijacked and How to Win it Back is a concise account of how the sharing economy has developed from technological panacea to dystopian nightmare over a decade. Given the extent to which apps such as Uber has permeated the fabric of society and daily life, it can be difficult to remember what sharing platforms promised to be a decade ago, and how far they have fallen from that ideal. After the Gig tracks that trajectory well and supplements it with living accounts gathered through extensive interviews with participants of the sharing economy.
The scope of the study is extensive enough to render the findings significant, but it should be noted that it is still primarily limited to the Boston area. Nonetheless, it has derived from this sample size a good analysis that answers fundamental questions about the gig economy, now that the initial pizzazz has faded away and it becomes possible, if one is determined, to see it for what it is and more importantly, find out how to make it work.
The key findings of the book for me were:
1. The sharing economy works best when it provides some alternative options, and worst when it is the only or dominant option. This is reflected in how the personal and financial experiences of "supplemental earners" were favorable compared to that of "dependent earners". The same is reflected in how ride-hail services initially alleviated some of the demand that traditional taxis were unable to cope with, but later evolved into effective taxi fleets themselves that directly competed with public transport providers, passed on operating risks to drivers, and intensified demand for taxi services.
2. Sharing platforms sell an idealistic discourse that is laden with ideology. This ties in well with the narcissistic, self-serving fantasies of users, who make use of the idealistic discourse to convince themselves that their engagement with the platform are based on altruistic, holier-than-thou motivations, which conceals the fact that they are simply maximizing economic outcomes for themselves.
3. Beneath the idealistic discourse is either a lack of any true value proposition that can sustain the realities of the free economy and society, as in the case of poorly organized time-banks, food-trades, and the like, or a value proposition that is in fact capitalistic, even predatory, in nature, that runs contrary to the idealistic discourse, as in the case of Uber. It is unclear if the authors' vision of an alternate model, "the platform cooperative", would be able to succeed in large numbers, noting that there is only one successful precedent so far.
Summarizing the above, it seems absurd now, as it was at the inception of the sharing economy, to expect society's fundamental problems such as inequality and discrimination to be solved by something as superfluous as a platform app. The sharing economy is but a tool, albeit a relatively new one, that can be used to create new economic structures to nudge society in new directions. Precisely which direction it nudges society in, however, is a function of the balance of forces within society itself.
Which would have been a pity, because After the Gig: How the Sharing Economy Got Hijacked and How to Win it Back is a concise account of how the sharing economy has developed from technological panacea to dystopian nightmare over a decade. Given the extent to which apps such as Uber has permeated the fabric of society and daily life, it can be difficult to remember what sharing platforms promised to be a decade ago, and how far they have fallen from that ideal. After the Gig tracks that trajectory well and supplements it with living accounts gathered through extensive interviews with participants of the sharing economy.
The scope of the study is extensive enough to render the findings significant, but it should be noted that it is still primarily limited to the Boston area. Nonetheless, it has derived from this sample size a good analysis that answers fundamental questions about the gig economy, now that the initial pizzazz has faded away and it becomes possible, if one is determined, to see it for what it is and more importantly, find out how to make it work.
The key findings of the book for me were:
1. The sharing economy works best when it provides some alternative options, and worst when it is the only or dominant option. This is reflected in how the personal and financial experiences of "supplemental earners" were favorable compared to that of "dependent earners". The same is reflected in how ride-hail services initially alleviated some of the demand that traditional taxis were unable to cope with, but later evolved into effective taxi fleets themselves that directly competed with public transport providers, passed on operating risks to drivers, and intensified demand for taxi services.
2. Sharing platforms sell an idealistic discourse that is laden with ideology. This ties in well with the narcissistic, self-serving fantasies of users, who make use of the idealistic discourse to convince themselves that their engagement with the platform are based on altruistic, holier-than-thou motivations, which conceals the fact that they are simply maximizing economic outcomes for themselves.
3. Beneath the idealistic discourse is either a lack of any true value proposition that can sustain the realities of the free economy and society, as in the case of poorly organized time-banks, food-trades, and the like, or a value proposition that is in fact capitalistic, even predatory, in nature, that runs contrary to the idealistic discourse, as in the case of Uber. It is unclear if the authors' vision of an alternate model, "the platform cooperative", would be able to succeed in large numbers, noting that there is only one successful precedent so far.
Summarizing the above, it seems absurd now, as it was at the inception of the sharing economy, to expect society's fundamental problems such as inequality and discrimination to be solved by something as superfluous as a platform app. The sharing economy is but a tool, albeit a relatively new one, that can be used to create new economic structures to nudge society in new directions. Precisely which direction it nudges society in, however, is a function of the balance of forces within society itself.
November 23, 2020
In the late 2000s/early 2010s, boosterist takes about the sharing economy were increasingly common, especially about how it would promote autonomy in work, communal solidarity, and a smaller ecological footprint. But there were always underlying tensions. What exactly was "new" when people had been sharing things for quite a long time, especially in working-class communities? And to what extent were some of these platforms really about sharing and not, say, renting?
Well, a decade later, the most successful platforms are the ones that hardly fit a definition of "sharing" -- Airbnb, Uber, and Lyft, now powerful enough to change laws in their favor, are all about renting excess capacity (or, in the case of Uber and Lyft, often purchasing the tools for your own work). And you have various platform-based services that "sharing" can't even remotely describe: a "Task Rabbit" or an "Instacart," core platforms today, are nothing like sharing and can often feel feudal.
Juliet Schor, along with some of her PhD students, analyze the history of the sharing/gig economy and the reality it has become, with its merger of a California ethos and a reinforcement of existing inequalities. Some of the most interesting parts of the book are the case studies they do about the users of different sharing sites as well as the divides in how people fare economically from platforms (unsurprisingly, it really depends on whether it's just for some extra money or a replacement for a full-time job, and a lot of sharing sites skew toward the privileged). Their book ends with a survey of on-the-ground policies and initiatives to make something that would actually live up to the name "sharing economy," with cooperative platforms and municipal regulations.
Well, a decade later, the most successful platforms are the ones that hardly fit a definition of "sharing" -- Airbnb, Uber, and Lyft, now powerful enough to change laws in their favor, are all about renting excess capacity (or, in the case of Uber and Lyft, often purchasing the tools for your own work). And you have various platform-based services that "sharing" can't even remotely describe: a "Task Rabbit" or an "Instacart," core platforms today, are nothing like sharing and can often feel feudal.
Juliet Schor, along with some of her PhD students, analyze the history of the sharing/gig economy and the reality it has become, with its merger of a California ethos and a reinforcement of existing inequalities. Some of the most interesting parts of the book are the case studies they do about the users of different sharing sites as well as the divides in how people fare economically from platforms (unsurprisingly, it really depends on whether it's just for some extra money or a replacement for a full-time job, and a lot of sharing sites skew toward the privileged). Their book ends with a survey of on-the-ground policies and initiatives to make something that would actually live up to the name "sharing economy," with cooperative platforms and municipal regulations.
September 1, 2020
As usual for Schor, this book is very readable and offers a couple of possible solutions to the problems with the sharing economy that she outlines. I didn't find it to be as wildly hopeful as Plenitude: The New Economics of True Wealth, but then again, I'm not nearly as emotionally invested in the sharing economy as I am in the idea of reduced productivity and work hours. If you're pretty into the sharing economy, work for a platform, or are interested in interrogating platforms' claims that sharing is good for people and the environment, this is essential reading.
While I didn't find this to be as eye-opening as Plenitude and The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline Of Leisure, I read those both before grad school, so with a very different frame of reference. I think in the case of the sharing economy, I was already a bit disillusioned with it before reading this book, so there was no big "aha" moment. What it does offer is again, a very readable account of years of rigorous research.
While I didn't find this to be as eye-opening as Plenitude and The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline Of Leisure, I read those both before grad school, so with a very different frame of reference. I think in the case of the sharing economy, I was already a bit disillusioned with it before reading this book, so there was no big "aha" moment. What it does offer is again, a very readable account of years of rigorous research.
January 8, 2023
Poignant description of the problems and SOME of the regulations (with the European context being quickly glossed over and the regulations hailed a bit too hastily), few interesting revelations (completely different positions of dependent/ non dependent workers, fortifying the old capital positions) and for me a bit confused take on the future and the "better sharing economy", which has not yet materialised (and may never actually become reality).
Overall, a solid and mainly concise read on a painful topic, worth a read.
Overall, a solid and mainly concise read on a painful topic, worth a read.
February 8, 2025
*Read for SOCY4931*
This was a pretty good book, just not something I’m super interested in. If you want to learn more about the sharing economy, or are interested in economics in general, I would highly recommend. Really interesting insight into platforms like Uber and airbnb. Also written by BC prof!! Super cool.
This was a pretty good book, just not something I’m super interested in. If you want to learn more about the sharing economy, or are interested in economics in general, I would highly recommend. Really interesting insight into platforms like Uber and airbnb. Also written by BC prof!! Super cool.
July 15, 2021
All the researched information was good, but like, it so often feels like the author really wants to reach a different conclusion than these platforms are terrible, were designed with terrible intent, and have terrible outcomes societally.
April 1, 2025
This is the book I wanted Collaborative Consumerism to be. I still felt like there were some points missing, such as how the sharing economy is still playing into being an economy instead of just sharing with your community. It was discussed in the last chapter, but I wanted a little more.
June 1, 2022
Interesting research about who works on sharing/gig platforms, how well they serve users, and how they could potentially not suck.
May 12, 2023
A balanced, scholarly, systematic review of the gig economy and how it has fallen short of the idealistic promises used on its behalf
October 6, 2025
future's looking real bleak!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews