Authored by Caden Rosenbaum, Tech and Innovation Policy Analyst
Out-of-the-box thinking is needed to answer the long-term sustainability question for providing benefits and protections for those workers operating in the gig economy.
One such solution, portable benefits plans, could close the gap without needing to tinker with the decades-old employee vs. independent contractor classification problem.
Rather than focusing on the legal status of workers in the gig economy, employer contributions for gig workers to portable benefits plans should be exempted from the legal employment test instead.
With access to some of the basic benefits and coverage options of a traditional employee, working in the gig economy as a professional choice would be more feasible.
That means the gig economy as a whole could grow to be more sustainable with the retention of skilled workers and an influx of new full-time gig workers.
Read More in our Public Policy Brief