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This week, I screened a film for DOC NYC, New York’s documentary film festival, called “The Gig Is Up.” You should peep it! It’s a sobering look into the rising popularity of app- and web-based jobs, from car services like Uber and Lyft to online services like web-scripting.
As you may know, these are industries fraught with worker neglect and mistreatment. The classification of so-called gig workers — a term often rejected by employees because many work full time — as independent contractors has made it easier for companies to deny workers benefits and worker protections against exploitation. (Some app-based companies say their drivers want to be independent contractors, though critics argue it strips workers of their rights.)
Unless you know a gig worker, it’s likely that the only time you hear from one is when they arrive at your doorstep or pick you up off the street. All of us need to hear from these people, especially as our reliance on them increases.
I spoke with Cherri Murphy — a social justice minister, Lyft driver and organizer with the advocacy group Gig Workers Rising — about the experience of gig work and the needs of employees like her, who keep the country moving in more ways than one.
This transcript has been edited slightly for length and clarity.
Ja’han Jones: How did you get started with this work, and how long have you been doing it?
Cherri Murphy: I was in my last year of my masters in divinity and beginning to start my doctoral program, and back in 2017, Lyft seemed like a godsend.
For three years, Lyft was my primary source of income and I completed over 12,000 rides. They advertised a job with a feature of “flexibility” that would allow me to make money while also loaning me a rental car. I was in desperate need of a car and that so-called flexibility and began working.
Soon, I found myself in a deadly and inflexible cycle. Over my time…
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