零工经济时代，人人都是自由职业者

2017-10-15ByBrandonAmbrosino译/刘志良

新东方英语 2017年10期

By+Brandon+Ambrosino+译/刘志良

Kage Yami is a ninja1） for hire.

For the past four years， the 27-year-old Newton2） resident has worked as a professional stunt3） performer for films and TV shows being made in the Boston area. Sometimes work takes him to New York. Sometimes California. Sometimes he models. Basically， he says， he takes on “whatever gig comes my way4）.”

Yami is one of a growing number of workers participating in the “gig economy，” the hip-sounding term used to describe those who make their livings in nontraditional ways—nontraditional meaning “in ways not limited to a 9-to-5 job” or， framed in less optimistic terms， “in ways that dont usually offer health insurance.”

According to a 2014 study commissioned by the Freelancers Union， 53 million Americans are independent workers， about 34 percent of the total workforce. A study from Intuit predicts that by 2020， 40 percent of US workers will fall into this category.

While there is considerable disagreement over this projection， what is clear is that “more and more jobs are being moved to independent contractor status，” says Jeffrey Pfeffer， a professor of organizational behavior at Stanford University. Pfeffer cites a recent paper that found that “the percentage of workers engaged in alternative work arrangements rose from 10.1 percent in February 2005 to 15.8 percent in late 2015.” This rise accounts for over 9 million people—more than all of the net employment growth in the US economy over that decade.

To be clear， employers are driving the change. Between 2009 and 2013， the unemployment rate was more than 7 percent， suggesting workers were turning to gigs because they didnt have a choice. But thats not to say most independent workers arent happy with their job situations. According to the Freelancers Union， a 300，000-plus member nonprofit， nearly nine out of 10 of its members surveyed said they would not return to a traditional job if given the chance.

Kage Yami loves what he does， and hes glad he gave up his Target job three years ago to focus exclusively on stunt work. The gigs are consistent， he says， “at least once a week.” In fact， he doesnt even need to seek them out anymore. Hes been dodging5） cars and falling off buildings for so long that directors now know who he is and offer him work before he even asks. Hes also in the union SAG-AFTRA6）， which means his pay is regulated7）（and pretty good） and he gets benefits.

But Yamis arrangement is wildly different than that of Jillian Melnyk， a 33-year-old independent worker in Waltham. Melnyk is a photographer and sells her work through traditional markets and online via Etsy. She also holds an MFA8） in writing and is working on a novel. “I kind of enjoy doing a handful of different things，” she says. “I like having different creative pursuits.” Good thing—because， as she readily admits， its tough to make a living just selling photography. So she supplements her income by working part time for Rochester & Genesee Valley Parent Magazine， a small publication her mother owns.endprint

Melnyk thinks the biggest challenge for independent workers is the income unpredictability. “Youll have one month thats great， then a month that isnt so great. You never really know where the revenue streams are going to be.”

Not to mention， says Pfeffer， that “in the US， every benefit comes through your employer—your 401k9）， health insurance， unemployment insurance. To the extent that you dont have an employer， you have no access to any of these things.”

To remedy this， Steven Hill， author of Raw Deal： How the “Uber Economy” and Runaway Capitalism Are Screwing American Workers， has proposed an Individual Security Account， which would stay with gig workers wherever their careers took them.

The gig economy doesnt treat everyone fairly， says Hill. “This economy leans to certain personalities，” he says， noting that making it largely depends on being able to hustle and market yourself 24/7.

“Taking great photos is step one，” says Zac Wolf， a 27-year-old wedding photographer in Brighton， who studied marketing in college to give himself an edge， “but there are so many steps after that.” If you know those steps， youll do well in this economy. If you dont—you might not.

Though researchers have long studied workplace psychology—the field even has its own name， industrial and organizational behavior—the growing gig economy hasnt received the same attention. Thats a shame： According to a recent paper from Roosevelt University， many freelancers regularly experience anxiety， frustration， anger， and depression， which is not surprising given the demonstrated benefits of regular employment on mental health.

Spencer Harrison， associate professor in the Carroll School of Management at Boston College， says that although gig workers face financial anxieties， the bigger issue can be an existential one. “Because we spend so much of our lives at work， work is a place where we find out who we are and craft our identities，” he says. “When were moving from one thing to the next， some people might sense a difficulty cobbling together10） ‘Who am I？ ”

Gianpiero Petriglieri， a psychiatrist and associate professor at INSEAD， an international graduate business school， studies independent workers with colleagues Sue Ashford and Amy Wrzesniewski. Theyve noticed a unique double bind adding to the anxiety of freelancers. “On one hand， the work is precarious11）， but at the same time， its very self-defining，” says Petriglieri. “So work is becoming more and more important to who you are， and at the same time its becoming less secure.”endprint

Anxiety about the future is one reason why Kage Yamis parents want their only son to get out of the stunt industry. “They say， ‘I know you make enough money to do this and to do that， but its not steady. If you want a job thats steady， you should go back to school. ” But Yami isnt listening. He thinks about the old saying that if you find a job you love， you wont ever have to work again. “To be honest， I dont think Ive ever worked a day in my life on a film set.”

Renee Rakowsky， a 60-year-old life coach in Newton， feels the same way. She says shes “virtually unemployable” in a traditional environment， with “the bureaucracy， the politics.” Thats why， when shes not coaching， she drives for Uber. “I want to take time off Friday because I want to do blah blah blah； I block out12） time. Flexibility is fundamental to me.”

But theres a hidden cost to this kind of flexibility. Because gig workers are never “on the clock，” theyre never really off it. A 2004 study concluded that because of the cyclical nature of independent work and the 24/7 brand management it requires， gig markets actually “place more rather than fewer constraints on workers time.”

So why， in light of all these anxieties， do most freelancers seem to prefer gig work？ “Thats the million-dollar question13），” says Wilma B. Liebman， former chair of the National Labor Relations Board. But one things for sure， she says： “There is deep discontentment among working people.”

The hard part for researchers who study gig work is knowing whether someone is pursuing a genuine narrative of passion— “Im doing this job because it gives me purpose” — or as more of a temporary Band-Aid14）， says Harrison. In either case， workers may speak positively about their jobs. And that makes sense， says Jeffrey Pfeffer. “Theres a process called cognitive dissonance15）， so you come to terms with16） where you are，” he says. “Humans have a way of not being chronically unhappy.”

But perhaps， says Petriglieri， some academics who spend their lives in established institutions might find it hard to look at freelance work as anything other than a bump in the road on the way to traditional employment. “Its as if we cant imagine people might actually choose to have a working life outside of an organization—and thrive.”

Whether they see the workplace changes as fundamentally positive or negative， experts agree that they need more research， because the gig economy isnt going away. In any economy， the name of the game17） is getting work done efficiently at the lowest cost. Sure， youre great at your job—but an independent worker could do just as well， and your boss wouldnt have to give her benefits. Or pay for her water-cooler time.endprint

Every worker needs to take part in these discussions， says Petriglieri. “This might be you some day.”

卡格·亚米是一名打短工的武者。

在过去四年中，这位27岁的牛顿市居民在波士顿地区制作的电影和电视节目中担任专业特技演员。出于工作需要，他有时会去纽约，有时会去加州。有时他当模特。他说，自己基本上“遇到什么零工”就干什么。

亚米是日益壮大的参与“零工经济”劳动者中的一员，“零工经济”这个听起来很时髦的用语是描述以非传统的方式谋生的人——这里“非传统”的含义是指“不限于朝九晚五的工作方式”，或者用不那么乐观的说法来表述的话，是指“通常不提供医疗保险的工作方式”。

2014年由自由职业者联盟委托进行的一项研究表明，美国有5300万人是个体劳动者，约占全部劳动力的34%。经营财务软件的高科技公司财捷集团的一项研究预测，到2020年，美国劳动力的40%将归入这一类别。

尽管针对这一估测有许多不同的意见，但显而易见的是，“越来越多的工作岗位正在转变为独立合同工性质”，斯坦福大学组织行为学教授杰弗里·普费弗这样说。普费弗引用了近期的一篇论文，该论文发现，“从事非传统工作类型的劳动者比例从2005年2月的10.1%上升至2015年底的15.8%。”这一比例增长代表着增加了900多万人——超过这十年美国经济就业净增长的总数。

需要说明的是，雇主正在推动这场变革。在2009年至2013年期间，失业率超过7%，这表明劳动者别无选择，只能转向打零工。但这并不是说大多数个体劳动者对其工作状况不满意。自由职业者联盟是一个拥有30多万成员的非营利组织，据该组织称，接近九成的受访成员表示，即便有机会，他们也不会重新从事传统的工作。

卡格·亚米很喜欢自己现在所做的工作，他三年前放弃了在塔吉特百货的工作，只专注于特技表演，他现在对当初的决定仍然感到高兴。他说，这些零工持续不断，“至少每周一次”。实际上，他甚至不再需要自己去找活儿干了。他长期从事躲闪汽车、跳楼之类的特技表演，导演现在都知道他是谁，甚至不用他主动请求就会给他提供工作。他也加入了美国演员工会及广播电视艺人联合会，这意味着他的薪资在政府监管的范围（并且相当不错），而且他还享有福利。

但是，亚米的工作安排与来自沃尔瑟姆市的33岁的个体劳动者吉利安·梅尔尼克的工作安排相差悬殊。梅尔尼克是一名摄影师，通过传统的交易市场和手工艺品交易平台Etsy网站出售自己的作品。她还拥有写作专业的艺术硕士学位，正在创作一部小说。“我喜欢做一些不同的事情，”她说，“我喜欢从事各种创意活动。”这是件好事——因为她爽快地承认，仅靠出售摄影作品是很难维持生计的。所以她还在《罗切斯特和杰尼西谷家长杂志》（她母亲拥有的一份小型刊物）兼职来增加收入。

梅尔尼克认为，个体劳动者面临的最大挑战是收入的不可预测性。“你会遇到特别好的一个月，然而接下来一个月又不那么好。你从来不会真正知道收入来源会在何处。”

更不用说的情况是，如普费弗所言，“在美国，每一项保险都要通過你的雇主提供——你的401k退休金计划、医疗保险、失业保险。在没有雇主的情况下，这些东西你都没法获得。”

为了解决这个问题，《原始交易：“优步经济”和赤裸的资本主义如何压榨美国工人》一书的作者史蒂芬·希尔建议设立个人保险账户，打零工的劳动者无论为了工作而前往何地，都将保有该账户。

希尔说，零工经济并非公平地对待每个人。“零工经济倾向于某些特定性格的人。”他说，并强调一个人要想成功，在很大程度上取决于其能否全天候地忙碌与推销自己。

“拍摄出色的照片是第一步，”布莱顿27岁的婚礼摄影师扎克·沃尔夫说，他在大学学习的是营销，这赋予了他优势，“但是之后还有许多步骤。”如果你知道那些步骤，你将在零工经济中做得如鱼得水；如果你不了解——你可能就做得不好。

研究人员对职场心理学进行了长期研究，该领域甚至有专属的名字，即工业和组织行为学，但是正在蓬勃发展的零工经济并没有受到同等的关注。这一点很遗憾：根据近期来自罗斯福大学的一篇论文，许多自由职业者经常感到焦虑、沮丧、愤怒和抑郁，这并不足为奇，因为正规就业对心理健康的益处已经得到证实。

波士顿学院卡罗尔管理学院副教授斯宾塞·哈里森表示，虽然零工劳动者面临财务方面的焦虑，但更大的问题可能是个人存在的焦虑。“因为我们把生命中的大量时间花在了工作上，所以工作是我们发现自我、构建自己身份的地方，”他说，“当我们不断变换自己所做的工作时，对于‘我是谁？这个问题，有些人可能会感觉难以拼凑出答案。”

英士是一所培养研究生的国际商学院，该学院副教授、精神科医生詹比耶洛·彼崔格里利与同事休·阿什福德和埃米·弗热辛斯基一起对个体劳动者进行了研究。他们注意到一种独特的双重束缚加重了自由职业者的焦虑。“一方面工作变得不稳定，但同时工作对自我定义非常重要。” 彼崔格里利说，“工作对定义‘你是谁变得越来越重要，而同时其又变得更加不稳定可靠。”

对未来感到焦虑是卡格·亚米的父母希望其独生子离开特技表演行业的原因之一。“他们说：‘我知道你赚的钱足够用来做这个、做那个，但是这并不稳定。如果你想要一份稳定的工作，你应该回学校读书。”但是，亚米听不进去。他脑海里一直回想起一句古话：如果你找到一份自己喜爱的工作，你一生中的任何一天都不是在工作中度过的。“说实话，我从未把在电影拍摄场的哪一天当做上班度过的。”

住在牛顿市的人生教练雷内·拉科夫斯基已经60岁了，她也有同样的感受。她说因为受不了传统环境中的“官僚主义和办公室政治”，她觉得“自己实际上不适合受雇”。这就是她在没有教练任务时会去给优步开车的原因。“我想在星期五休息一下，因为我想做这个或那个；我可以预留时间。灵活性对我来说至关重要。”endprint

但这种灵活性也有潜在的成本。因为零工劳动者永远不会“按时上班”，所以他们也永远不会“按时下班”。2004年一项研究得出的结论是，由于独立工作具有周期性，并要求进行全天候的品牌管理，零工市场实际上“对劳动者的时间限制更多，而不是更少”。

既然存在所有这些令人焦虑的因素，那么为什么大多数自由职业者似乎仍更加钟情于打零工呢？“这是个难以回答的问题。” 美国全国劳资关系委员会前主席威尔玛·B·利布曼说。但有一件事是确定无疑的，她说：“劳动人民普遍深感不满。”

对于研究零工的研究人员来说，比较棘手的是搞清楚某人是否在真实地描述其激情——“我现在做这项工作，是因为这个工作让我觉得有意义”——还是更多的是作为临时的权宜之计，哈里森说。无论属于哪一种情况，劳动者都可能会积极地评价自己的工作。这也很容易理解，杰弗里·普费弗表示。“人类存在认知失调的现象，由此你能与自己的处境相妥协，”他说，“人类总有方式让自己规避长期不快乐。”

但是，彼崔格里利表示，有些一直在老牌的机构里工作的学者除了把自由职业视为通往传统就业道路上的一道坎儿之外，可能难以形成其他看法。“这就好像我们无法想象，人们可能真的愿意选择机构之外的职业生涯——并且获得成功。”

无论他们对职业场景变化给予的看法在根本上是积极的还是消极的，专家们都认为他们需要进行更多的研究，因为零工经济不会消失。在任何经济体系中，最关键的都是以最低的成本高效地完成工作。当然，你很擅長自己的工作——但个体劳动者也可以做得同样好，而且你的老板还不用给她提供福利，或者为她喝水休息的时间付钱。

普费弗说，每个劳动者都需要参与这些讨论，“说不定哪天打零工就轮到你头上了”。

受够了每天朝九晚五的固定工作时间的束缚，想要按自己的意愿灵活安排工作时间？受够了日复一日重复同一种工作的枯燥乏味，想在多个职业领域内一试身手？那么，欢迎来到零工经济时代。借助互联网的高速发展，零工经济正成为一种时髦的新经济形式，受到雇主与劳动者的欢迎与推动。不过任何事物都有两面性，下面就随本文来全面了解零工经济时代给人们带来的喜与忧吧！

1.ninja [?n?nd??] n. 忍者（受过日本传统打斗和轻功训练的人）

2.Newton：牛顿市，位于美国马萨诸塞州东部的米德尔塞克斯县，波士顿市西面。

3.stunt [st?nt] n. （电影的）特技表演

4.come ones way：意外地发生在某人身上

5.dodge [d?d?] vt. 闪开，跳开，躲开

6.SAG-AFTRA：美国演员工会及广播电视艺人联合会，英文全称为Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists。

7.此处指付给劳动者的薪酬受到政府的监管，比如需要符合最低工资标准等。

8.MFA：艺术硕士，全称为Master of Fine Arts，是为了培养艺术创作、表演领域的人才的硕士专业教育。

9.401k：401k计划，指美国于20世纪80年代初实施的一种由雇员、雇主共同缴费建立起来的完全基金式的养老保险制度，相当于中国的企业年金制度。

10.cobble together：（匆忙而草率地）拼凑

11.precarious [pr??ke?ri?s] adj. 不牢靠的，不稳的，危险的

12.block out：预留（时间）