再见“工作”，你好“零工”

By+Geoff+Nunberg+译/夏辉

在英美國家里，零工经济有一个酷炫的名字，叫gig economy。Gig一词原本是乐手们用来称呼聚会或表演，为何如今又被用来概括这一种新经济形式呢？也许这要从20世纪40年代就兴起的反主流文化潮流说起。

“Gig” goes back more than a century as musicians slang for a date or engagement. Nobodys sure where it originally came from， though there are lots of imaginative theories out there. But the word didnt have any particular glamour until the 1950s， when the hipsters1） and the Beats2） adapted it to mean any job you took to keep body and soul together3） while your real life was elsewhere.

The earliest example of that usage of the word that Ive found is from a 1952 piece by Jack Kerouac4）， talking about his gig as a part-time brakeman for the Southern Pacific railroad in San Jose. For the hipsters， calling a job a gig was a way of saying it didnt define you. A gig was a commitment you felt free to walk away from as soon as you had $50 in your pocket.

That was the era when the “real job”—permanent， well-paid and with benefits—was enjoying its moment in the American sun5）， thanks to the New Deal programs6）， strong unions and the postwar boom. So to turn away from that security and comfort in search of something more meaningful seemed a daring and romantic gesture. When you read Kerouac now， it still does.

“Gig” was a natural for the hippies who succeeded the hipsters， who made the avoidance of regular work a condition of tribal membership. But the words more subversive7） overtones receded along with the counterculture8）. In recent decades， “gig” has become just a hip term for any temporary job or stint， with the implication youre not particularly invested in it. I think of the barista or bookstore clerk who responds to my questions with a look that says， “Hey， man， its a gig. I dont really DO this.”

That tone of insouciance9） has made “the gig economy” the predominant name for whats being touted as the industrial revolution of our times. The lifetime job is history， were told， a victim of technology and the logic of the market. Instead， careers will be a patchwork of temporary projects and assignments， with the help of apps and platforms with perky names like FancyHands， Upwork and TaskRabbit.

It has been called the on-demand economy， the 1099 economy10）， the peer-to-peer economy， and freelance nation， among other things. But over the past year， investors， the business media and politicians seem to have settled on “the gig economy.” It strikes just the right jaunty， carefree note11）. The Financial Times explains that in the future， work will be less secure but lots more exciting. We can make our own schedule and hours， pick the projects that interest us， work from anywhere and try our hands at different trades.endprint

The buzzwords fly thick and fast12） here—well be “solopreneurs” and “free range humans” with “portfolio careers13）.” As the head of a freelancers organization puts it， were no longer just lawyers， or photographers， or writers. Instead， were part-time lawyers-cum-amateur photographers who write on the side14）.

Thats the image that phrases like “the gig economy” and “freelance nation” bring to mind， an economy populated by professionals and creatives， typically single millennials—people who may be willing to trade some security for the opportunity to take a month or two off to visit Patagonia. But that language doesnt get at the people who are cut loose15） in the new economy and who arent reveling in the independence it gives them—the ill-paid temps and contingent workers that some have called the “precariat16）.”

When you hear “freelancer” you dont think of the people cobbling together a livelihood cleaning apartments， delivering groceries and doing other peoples laundry. And not many of those people think of themselves as having gigs. Unless youre a bass player， calling a job a gig is a luxury reserved for people who can pretend they dont need one.

If you have a long cultural memory， its a bit jarring to hear those paeans to gig life coming from the venture capitalists and consultants who are hyping the new economic order. Its as if the shade of Kerouac were still haunting the place thats now called Silicon Valley， where he had his gig as a brakeman 65 years ago.

But their logic sounds impeccable. If “gig” suggests the independence you get when youre not tied down to a steady lifetime job， then just think of the freedom well all enjoy when the traditional job is consigned17） to the scrap heap of history， and the economy is just gigs all the way down. But the idea of a gig is only alluring if you know you can hit the road when it gets joyless. Otherwise its just an old word for a job you need that you cant count on having tomorrow.

“Gig”一词有百余年的历史，最初是乐手们用来称呼聚会或表演的一个俗语。虽然坊间流传着许多富有想象力的说法，却没人能真正确定它的由来。不过这个词到了20世纪50年代才焕发出特别的光彩，当时的潮客和垮掉的一代用这个词来指称你做的任何可以糊口度日的零碎工作，而你真正的生活在别的地方。

我所找到的这个词义的最早用法，是出自杰克·凯鲁亚克写于1952年的一篇文章，文中记述了他在圣何塞为南太平洋铁路打零工，做兼职司闸员的经历。对潮客而言，把工作称为零工，相当于说你所干的活与你是什么样的人无关。所谓零工，就是只要你挣够50美金，就可以马上离职走人的一份差事。

由于罗斯福新政项目、强大的工会和战后的繁荣，当时的年代是“货真价实的工作”在美国最受欢迎的时代，这些工作长久可靠，薪水丰厚，福利到位。在这种情况下，不要这份安稳和舒适，却转而寻求更有意义的东西，似乎是一个大胆而浪漫的举动。即使是现在再读凯鲁亚克，还是能够感受到这种色彩。

对于潮客之后的嬉皮士而言，“gig”（零工）一词更是天然契合，因为成为嬉皮士团体一员的前提条件就是对工作的闪避。但是这个词里所包含的更为颠覆性的含义却随着反文化运动的退潮而消退了。在最近的几十年中，“零工”一词已经成为所有临时工作或短期工作的时髦叫法，意思是你并没打算全身心投入其中。这让我想起那些咖啡店服务员或书店店员，当我向他们问询时，他们臉上的表情仿佛在说：“嘿，伙计，我就是打个零工罢了。我可不是真干这个的。”endprint

这种漫不经心的腔调使“零工经济”的叫法得到广泛接受，用以命名这个被吹嘘为是我们这个时代的工业革命。我们被告知，一干就是一辈子的工作已经成为历史，这个结果是科技带来的牺牲品，符合市场发展的逻辑。取而代之的是，一个人的职业是由无数临时项目和任务拼接而成的，要依仗那些拥有响亮名字的应用和平台，比如“好帮手”（FancyHands）、“接单开工”（Upwork）以及 “跑腿兔”（TaskRabbit）。

这种经济现实又被称为按需经济、1099经济、P2P经济、自由职业之国，诸如此类。但是在去年，投资者、商业媒体和政客们似乎都认同了“零工经济”这个叫法。它成功塑造出一种愉快又轻松的氛围。《金融时报》解释道，在未來，工作虽然会变得没那么稳定，却更加激动人心。我们可以自己规划日程和钟点，挑选我们感兴趣的项目，不受办公地点的局限，在不同领域中都可以一试身手。

由此产生了一大批流行词汇——我们将成为“单打独斗的创业家”以及“自由驰骋的新人类”，而我们所从事的是“多项职业大荟萃”。正如一个自由职业机构的负责人所说的那样，我们不再仅仅是律师，或摄影师，或作家。我们将会是一个业余时间从事写作的兼职律师及摄影爱好者。

这就是诸如“零工经济”和“自由职业之国”这些词汇所描绘出的图景，该经济中都是专业人士和创意高手，尤其是那些单身的千禧一代——这些人兴许会愿意牺牲一些工作上的稳定性，来换取一个去巴塔哥尼亚一两个月的机会。但是这种描述没有触及那些在新经济中无处立足的人，以及那些并没有为新经济所带来的独立自由而欢欣鼓舞的人，这些人包括薪水低廉的临时雇员和被有些人称为“无保障无产者”的临时工。

当你听到“自由职业者”的时候，你所想到的一定不是那些以清扫公寓、运送杂货和帮人清洗衣物为营生的人们。而这些人当中也没有多少人认为自己是在打零工。除非你是个拥有一技之长的贝斯演奏家，否则把工作称为零工是那些可以自我安慰说自己不需要工作的人才负担得起的一种奢侈。

如果你的文化记忆足够久，听到那些推动新经济秩序的风险资本家和顾问们高唱零工生活的赞歌，会感到有些刺耳。仿佛凯鲁亚克的身影依然流连在这个如今被叫做硅谷的地方，65年前，他正是在这里打了一份司闸员的零工。

然而他们的逻辑的确听起来无可挑剔。如果“零工”为人们许诺了一种独立感，人们将不受一份稳定的终身工作的束缚，那么，一旦传统的工作被丢进历史的故纸堆，我们所享受到的自由该多么激动人心啊，而经济则要向着零工的方向一路高歌凯进了。然而，只有当你一旦觉得某份零工索然无味就可以抽身走人时，零工这个想法才算诱人。否则不过是新瓶装了“工作”的旧酒，不同的是，这份工作你明明需要，却不知道明天还留不留得住。

1.hipster [?h?pst?（r）] n. 潮客，特指20世纪40～50年代反主流文化的人，后来这个词演变为hippies （嬉皮士）。

2.the Beats：垮掉的一代，二战后美国出现的一批年轻人，他们对社会现实不满，蔑视传统观念，拒绝承担任何社会义务，以浪迹天涯为乐。

3.keep body and soul together：勉强维持生计

4.Jack Kerouac：杰克·凯鲁亚克（1922～1969），美国作家，美国“垮掉的一代”的代表人物。

5.ones moment in the sun：某事物特别成功、流行的时期

6.New Deal programs：指美国总统罗斯福于1933～1939年实施的一系列对经济进行干预的政策。

7.subversive [s?b?v??（r）s?v] adj. 颠覆性的，倾覆性的

8.counterculture：反文化运动，指20世纪60年代和70年代美国青年中形成的一种文化群落，表现为反传统的生活方式和思想道德观念。

9.insouciance [?n?su?si?ns] n. 无忧无虑；逍遥自在；漫不经心；漠不关心

10.1099 economy：1099经济，自雇型经济的另一种称呼，“1099”是美国合同工的税表，在自雇平台上打工需要填这种税表，因此得名。

11.strike … note：表达……的情感；带有……的印象；营造……的氛围

12.thick and fast：又快又多地，频频

13.portfolio careers：多种职业组合

14.on the side：兼职；在正事之外；作为副业

15.cut loose：（从束缚等中）解放出来，摆脱；结束对……的控制

16.precariat：无业游民，边缘劳工，由precarious和proletariat混合而成的词。

17.consign [k?n?sa?n] vt. 留出，拨出endprint