Monday morning musings for workplace watchers.
Sizing Up the Gig Workforce|OSHA Whistleblower Investigations
Rebecca Rainey: The non-partisan Government Accountability Office says the federal government needs to do a better job of tracking “nonstandard and contract work arrangements” so lawmakers can make better decisions on policies impacting those working in the gig economy. And the US Labor Department has agreed to lead the effort.
Federal regulators and outside analysts have struggled for years to wrap their arms around the true size of the gig or contingent workforce, which GAO defines as those engaged in “work that is not permanent, year-round employment with predictable full-time hours.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics tried to capture the number of workers in “electronically-mediated” jobs through a survey in 2017, but later said it would reassess the findings after concluding that its questions yielded “false positives,” among other issues.
Now, GAO has tasked the DOL with setting up a “mechanism” to bring together agencies that collect workforce data and create a more accurate and complete measure of the workers participating in this segment of the economy. The project will run through the BLS.
A DOL spokesperson confirmed via email that “the department and the Bureau of Labor Statistics are supportive of the recommendation. BLS is currently working to define next steps.”
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