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Businesses The Almighty Buck United States

More Gig Economy Workers Can Now Get Paid On Demand (bloomberg.com) 108

Posted by msmash from the gig-economy dept.
The gig economy is built on people offering their services on demand. Now more of them will have the option of getting paid just as quickly, reports Bloomberg. From the report: Care.com Inc., Instacart Inc., Postmates Inc. and several other marketplace providers will soon start giving workers the chance to cash out their earnings immediately, instead of waiting for the usual weekly deposit. That's because Stripe Inc., the payment processing service that underpins many of the on-demand companies, will introduce the feature to all customers for a fee. Quick cash is a big draw for workers. Stripe originally built a version of instant payouts at the request of Lyft Inc., the largest U.S. ride-hailing app behind Uber. Lyft began offering same-day pay to its drivers in December. Since then, Stripe has processed $500 million in instant payments for Lyft, and half of all driver payouts now go through that feature, the companies said. "It shows us how valuable this product is to drivers," said Lachy Groom, Stripe's cards lead.
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More Gig Economy Workers Can Now Get Paid On Demand More

More Gig Economy Workers Can Now Get Paid On Demand

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  • What is the fee? Is this the online equivalent of paycheck cashing services or payday loans? Is there any regulation of this fee?

  • Um, what about cash and checks? (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward

    When I do "gig work" (which is really just working as a contractor), I give my client an invoice and they have a reasonable time to pay, or they can pay me on the spot with cash or check, or whatever. I don't see why I need to pay someone to get in the middle of that.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by plopez ( 54068 )

      Don't forget to charge interest. If they are late charge them for it. At what ever the usury rate is. You are running a business after all.

  • Gig economy = absolving corporate responsibility (Score:5, Insightful)

    by sinij ( 911942 ) on Tuesday September 20, 2016 @09:14AM (#52923393)
    Gig economy is ultimately about absolving corporate responsibility and offloading traditional costs of employment on society while retaining control of the profits and money flow.

    Historically, corporations were responsible for worker well-being. Work accidents, unemployment insurance, disability and illness, old age benefits were all part of the pay package. This was fought for and won by unions during early industrial age (aka the robber-baron age). Over past 30 years corporations fought hard to reverse these gains. First, pensions were absolved. Now, with this gig economy the rest of protections are being removed. We already have undischargable student dept.

    At this rate, we will be back to debt slavery, compelled work, and company towns in another decade or so. Only this time it will be "gig economy" and "enabled entrepreneurship" or some other PR BS.

    • Re:Gig economy = absolving corporate responsibilit (Score:5, Insightful)

      by geekmux ( 1040042 ) on Tuesday September 20, 2016 @09:31AM (#52923511)

      Gig economy is ultimately about absolving corporate responsibility and offloading traditional costs of employment on society while retaining control of the profits and money flow. Historically, corporations were responsible for worker well-being. Work accidents, unemployment insurance, disability and illness, old age benefits were all part of the pay package. This was fought for and won by unions during early industrial age (aka the robber-baron age). Over past 30 years corporations fought hard to reverse these gains. First, pensions were absolved. Now, with this gig economy the rest of protections are being removed. We already have undischargable student dept. At this rate, we will be back to debt slavery, compelled work, and company towns in another decade or so. Only this time it will be "gig economy" and "enabled entrepreneurship" or some other PR BS.

      Hit the nail on the head, and it practically disgusts me that those who find little or no value with traditional costs and benefits (mainly due to lack of experience, ignorance, or both) are practically championing the "gig economy".

      It's like watching someone demand every online service for free, and then watch them bitch and moan about a lack of privacy, failing to understand that they sold their privacy soul in order to avoid any material cost.

      TL; DR - Ignorance always comes at a price.

      • It's not just that the protections are being removed - so are the capital costs and the recurring costs for consumables (tires, fuel, etc), as well as "plant maintenance," insurance, etc. Unlike regular contractors, you can't negotiate price, you can't control the schedule for when a task has to be completed by putting more or fewer resources into it, etc. Uber drivers are not contractors, and the Uber gig economy is a lie.

      • It's like watching someone demand every online service for free, and then watch them bitch and moan about a lack of privacy, failing to understand that they sold their privacy soul in order to avoid any material cost.

        But no one would EVER do tha... oh, right.

      • It's like watching someone demand every online service for free, and then watch them bitch and moan about a lack of privacy, failing to understand that they sold their privacy soul in order to avoid any material cost.

        Or people demanding software and music be free then bitch and moan when the people who produced the items go after them for not paying for the product because of a failure to understand the material costs involved in producing the items.

        • It's like watching someone demand every online service for free, and then watch them bitch and moan about a lack of privacy, failing to understand that they sold their privacy soul in order to avoid any material cost. Or people demanding software and music be free then bitch and moan when the people who produced the items go after them for not paying for the product because of a failure to understand the material costs involved in producing the items.

          For the small fish in the music pond, this is absolutely unfair. That said, it's a bit hard for Joe Consumer to grasp the concept of paying the artist as the music industry continues to churn out obnoxious millionaires that relish in demonstrating just how rich they are in the most narcissistic way possible.

          Not saying you're wrong. Just pointing out why it's hard for some to grasp the concept of properly rewarding the artist.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by wbr1 ( 2538558 )
      Company scrip will likely be some sort of blockchain currency you cannot exchange except at a loss. Unless you of course spend it on overpriced company goods. But, it won't be called scrip or illegal because it's patented and on the interwebs.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by tomhath ( 637240 )

      This was fought for and won by unions during early industrial age

      Odd that you bring that up since the main force behind Uber and Lyft is the artificial price of taxi service brought on by those same unions. People blame politicians for the regulations, but who do you think owns those politicians?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by chihowa ( 366380 )

        It's almost as if graft, corruption, and regulatory capture are more the issue than the unions. Odd that the same thing happens in other arenas without unions. In the same vein, it's odd that government can be a force for the defense of personal rights and freedom, but corruption can turn it into a horribly oppressive force.

        The answer to the issue of corrupt unions is to cleanse them of corruption, not to dissolve them so that workers are once again at a disadvantage in negotiations with management.

    • Historically, corporations were responsible for worker well-being. Work accidents,...

      By "historically" do you within the last 20 years? In the last 10000 years of humanity, this has really only been the case in the last few decades, and all it results in is dependency on your employer.

      At this rate, we will be back to debt slavery, compelled work...

      Or more opportunity, flexibility and freedom to change work. Depends if you're a glass half full or half empty person.
      I really find it odd that you are defending corporate culture. The gig economy is simply providing services that allow you the choice to do more things. The service providers don't demand you

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by mhkohne ( 3854 )

      Gig economy is ultimately about absolving corporate responsibility and offloading traditional costs of employment on society while retaining control of the profits and money flow.

      Historically, corporations were responsible for worker well-being. Work accidents, unemployment insurance, disability and illness, old age benefits were all part of the pay package. This was fought for and won by unions during early industrial age (aka the robber-baron age). Over past 30 years corporations fought hard to reverse these gains. First, pensions were absolved. Now, with this gig economy the rest of protections are being removed. We already have undischargable student dept.

      At this rate, we will be back to debt slavery, compelled work, and company towns in another decade or so. Only this time it will be "gig economy" and "enabled entrepreneurship" or some other PR BS.

      One point: old age benefits are seriously problematic under the old system - ask anyone whose pension vanished in a puff of bankruptcy.

      While I'll certainly agree with your basic point that the Gig economy is about employers weaseling out of their responsibilities, I'll also make the assertion that the employer should NOT be running any of these things themselves (having seen the bills my co-workers got when our employer stopped putting money into the 'self-insurance' pot). They should be PAYING for them, ju

  • Gig (Score:2)

    by rossdee ( 243626 )

    Gig a bit or Gig a byte

    and is it 10^9 or 2^30

  • Destitute Drivers (Score:4, Insightful)

    by stwf ( 108002 ) on Tuesday September 20, 2016 @09:27AM (#52923489)

    Doesn't this really just show how poorly the drivers are doing? Why would anyone pay a fee to get their money now instead of at the end of the week or month? Because they have absolutely no money! Also reinforces the poverty by taking the money from people who have no choice but to pay up.

    • There is an easy explanation to this.... what about a driver that does one ride a week? The transfer cost would be a huge percentage of the paycheck.. so why should Uber eat it?

  • I've seen this before (Score:3)

    by liquid_schwartz ( 530085 ) on Tuesday September 20, 2016 @09:34AM (#52923541)
    Is it just me or are we moving towards the movie "In Time"? Now we get paid daily for our daily bread ... er time. Just a few advances with regards to ageing and we'll be all set.

  • Sounds like a check cashing place (Score:5, Insightful)

    by ErichTheRed ( 39327 ) on Tuesday September 20, 2016 @09:39AM (#52923577)

    If anyone wants to see how well those gig economy workers are doing overall, here's a perfect example. Admittedly it's an optional service, but the fact that they can offer someone a fee-based service to access their pay immediately doesn't paint the picture of happy carefree workers.

    Check cashing places and payday loan companies are other examples of companies making money off other peoples' bad situations. If your credit sucks so badly that you can't open a bank account, helpful businesses like this will happily cash that check for you...for a price. Low-wage employers are also doing stuff like putting employee pay on a debit card loaded with extra fees to access the funds. Most of the big retailers like supermarkets, Walmart, etc. don't write paper checks to employees anymore, and present this as the only option if you can't get a checking account. Even food stamp and welfare recipients, the people who are most likely to not be able to make good financial decisions, are having their benefits paid out electronically.

    I think the gig economy cheerleaders will come around to championing stable employment when traditional employers figure out a way to treat their entire workforce like this.

    • Check cashing places and payday loan companies are other examples of companies making money off other peoples' bad situations. If your credit sucks so badly that you can't open a bank account, helpful businesses like this will happily cash that check for you...for a price.

      Your credit score doesn't affect your ability to open a bank account. I think you misunderstand why these establishments exist or how they work. People who frequent them either:

      • distrust banks (or are staying off the radar so their a

  • Centuries ago, "free" laborors (not slaves or similarly "bound") were paid daily.

    Even today, street-corner "day laborers" who aren't working through an agency typically get paid daily.

    Most real-world independent contractors negotiate their own pay schedules with their clients. Just go to Craigslist's "gigs" or similar areas and you will see what I mean.

    The difference with the modern "app-driven gig economy" is that 1) there are middle-men, and 2) enough people don't mind waiting to be paid that middle-men

  • ... the more fragile it becomes. [wsj.com]

    Hanjin - a major korean shipping corp recently gone bankrupt - has massive containerships standing at sea, not allowed to run into harbours because the harbour authorities are afraid they won't see their fees. As a result, companies relying on their shipments done with Hanjin are on the brink of bankruptcy, because they can't deliver. And on it goes down the foodchain.

    This is what happens if you cut it too thin and expect dirt-cheap stuff and services everywhere, every time a

    • What do you mean "end with"? If it ended with deflation, we'd be seeing the credits rolling by now. We have arrived at deflation. Banks have to pay penalty interest when trying to bunker money with the ECB. It got to the grotesque situation that loaners that got their interest rate coupled to the ECB rates are about to GET interest for having a loan running (in case our banks can't find a loophole in the contracts, but I'm confident they find a way out of this).

      We are at the point where money has never been

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by NotAPK ( 4529127 )

        "We are at the point where money has never been cheaper and STILL people won't take out loans because, well, there simply isn't anything to invest in."

        And there's nothing wrong with that.

        We live on a finite planet.

        Exponential growth [albartlett.org] on a finite planet is doomed.

        This [youtube.com] is well worth watching and understanding.

        • Didn't say that it's wrong, only that deflation is happening.

          • It would be fine if the central bank, leading economists, politicians would acknowledge this. Deflation can be good if it is accepted and prepared for... But instead it is 'full steam ahead' and they are pulling out all the stops to avoid it, which will make the effects deeper and more profound when they happen.

    • I heard about this a few days back, but there's been surprisingly little about it in the mainstream news. Either they've come up with a workaround or it's just not as sexy as when the banks all go tits up. and the dominoes start a-fallin'.

  • "option of getting paid just as quickly, "
    "will introduce the feature to all customers for a fee"

    Translation: option of getting paid less

    • Translation: option of getting paid less

      Only if you don't include the fee into the cost of doing business that is passed on to the customer.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by spitzak ( 4019 )

        So some Uber rides will cost 50 cents more because the driver is doing this? I don't think so. This will come out of the drivers income. Don't be naive.

        • Don't be naive.

          Don't be stupid. Uber drivers don't set the business model. If you're an entrepreneur, you add the fees into the business model, pass the cost to the customer and keep the profits. Business 101.

  • why are we lauding charging fees? (Score:3)

    by YesIAmAScript ( 886271 ) on Tuesday September 20, 2016 @01:08PM (#52925345)

    Charging people money to get their money they earned?

    This isn't an innovation, it's just a new style of advance loan, like ripoff payday loans and tax refund loans.

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