Creating a Better World Through Alternative Employment Arrangements

Abstract

In the last years, we have seen a rapid increase of alternative employment arrangements due to technological advances, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the changing expectations of workers. Alternative employment arrangements that include gig work, freelancing, side hustles, and microwork through digital platforms have become an integral part of the modern workforce and thus dramatically changed the nature of work. This symposium aims to explore the ways in which alternative work arrangements influence the daily lives and identities of individual workers, how workers respond to the algorithmic practices embedded in some of the largest gig worker platforms, and why traditional conceptualizations of commitment and human resource management fail to incorporate independent workers who are often outside the boundaries of formal HRM practices. Using different theoretical perspectives (Affective Event Theory, Identity Theory) and employing a variety of qualitative and quantitative research methods, we specifically focus on strategies that help workers to better realize the benefits and reduce the downsides of alternative employment arrangements and thus facilitate a creation of a better world for nonstandard workers. Psychology of Solo: Good and Bad Days Working in the Gig Economy and Their Effect on Mental Health Presenter: Phoenix Von Wagoner; U. of Colorado, Boulder Presenter: Ksenia Keplinger; Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems Presenter: Russell Cropanzano; U. of Colorado, Boulder Presenter: Brittany Lambert; Indiana U. - Kelley School of Business Unhooking from the Matrix: Targeting the Algorithmic Manager through Algo-Activism Presenter: Kalie Wertz; Columbia Business School Presenter: Lindsey Cameron; The Wharton School, U. of Pennsylvania I am a human being, not an algorithm: Commitment within the precarious space of microwork Presenter: Niki Panteli; Royal Holloway Uni of London & NTNU, Norway Balancing the Main Act and the Side Hustle Presenter: Yifeng Fan; Fairfield U. Professional Boundaries and Barriers to HR Involvement with Independent Professionals Presenter: David Cross; Southampton Business School, U.K