The pattern of gig work

  1. Company launches gig platform
  2. Early employees, or more accurately contractors, have plenty of work and it seems like a job you can support yourself with.
  3. More and more people sign up, until company has enough contractors to handle peak workload.
  4. Peak workload declines and work becomes intermittent
  5. Company keeps adding contractors
  6. Company starts squeezing existing contractors
  7. Eventually company puts in wait list to sign up, but keeps equilibrium of more contractors than needed.