Gig workers are who normally work as independent contractors, providing a service to a company and being paid per job (or “gig”), which has historically been referred to as piece work, a type of payment which has been rarely used since the 1800s in most industries. As independent contractors workers supply their own equipment, uniforms and time to complete their duties as required. As independent contractors, gig workers are not entitled to the same rights as regular employees, a fact many companies use to exploit workers, through under payment, poor conditions or unsafe work practices.

Gig Workers often work in ride-share, food & service delivery, in-home aged care, cleaning & childcare industries.

This is opposed to the more standard form of employment found in most industries, whereby a worker is hired by a boss to work consistently for a company at a set wage, which may be an hourly rate (most common in casual work), or part of an annual salary. Workers in formal employment can be recognised by such things as an employment contract, the requirement to wear a uniform, less flexibility around rostering, and having equipment supplied by their employer. These workers are also entitled to further rights such as superannuation, paid leave and are covered by the National Employment Standards.

Situations where workers are employed as independent contractors but expected to carry out the duties of a formal employee, where flexibility is limited and the worker does not have the right to negotiate their pay are known as sham contracting, which denies workers their rights and forces them into vulnerable positions. This type of contracting is highly illegal.

If you feel like you’ve been misrepresented as an independent contractor, and work under formal employment conditions, you can reach out to the Young Workers Centre for free & confidential legal advice here.  

Working for a platform, such as Uber may mean work feels distant from official oversight, but these organisations still have responsibilities with regards to your safety. This means they are responsible for providing and maintaining a safe working environment for their employees and non-employee gig workers, as well as eliminating or reducing, risks and hazards, and notify WorkSafe of serious workplace incidents. 

You also have health and safety rights when visiting other workplaces, such as collecting an order from a restaurant, or entering a office building. These businesses have a responsibility to keep you safe whilst you’re on site, If you see or experience anything unsafe in these environments, you’re entitled to raise a complaint with the business, or inform WorkSafe. 

Included in Health and Safety are things like bullying and harassment. Verbal, physical or pyschological abuse are unacceptable in any work environment, and platforms have a responsibility to ensure their workers are safe from these hazards, and prevent any harm coming to gig workers. If a platform allows customers, passengers or other workers to bully, harass or intimidate a worker, they are entitled to reach out to WorkSafe, the Young Workers Centre, the Gig Workers Support Service or all three.

If you see something unsafe, experience a near-miss or an accident you can seek assistance from your union, or reach out to WorkSafe for further information. More information is available here

The Victorian Sick Pay Guarantee provides up to 38 hours of sick or carer's pay to Victorians in specific casual or contract jobs. Recently, this scheme has been expanded to include more jobs in the gig-worker sector, such as ride-share drivers.  

 Signing up to the scheme means that if you’re sick or unwell, and cant work, you can still be paid for the time you have off. This means you don’t have to choose between working sick, and not getting paid at all. Importantly, to access the scheme, you must be signed up before you get sick, so to ensure you’re ready, you can sign up now through this quick website here.

From time to time workers may find themselves in dispute with their platform over payments, account suspensions and safety issues, or other issues. Workers in these situations should firstly make efforts to record information related to disputes, such as photos, invoices and communications between themselves and the platform.  

Workers in dispute should seek advice from an organisation like the Young Workers Centre or the Victorian Gig Worker Support Service, who can help you make your case, and win back lost earnings or protect your rights as a gig-worker.  

Hubs have been set up as “lunchrooms” for gig workers, where people can go, eat lunch, use bathrooms and do light repairs on their equipment. They’re open most days between 2pm and 5pm at 227-229 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC, Australia.  

Workers in the gig economy face difficult challenges and legal obstacles to achieving fair working conditions, but they are not alone. Many gig workers in the transportation, such as Uber or Doordash have worked with their union, the Transport Workers Union, to win significant claims for industry wide reforms to improve the lives of gig workers.  You can find out more and join their fight by following this link here.

The State Government’s Gig Worker Support Service is an initiative to support Gig Workers by improving fairness and advice to workers in the sector. They can help to resolve disputes and offer interpreter services for workers with a language background other than English. You can visit their website or make an enquiry via this link or call 1800 000 478