Abraham comments on gig economy measures
Writing in the New York Times, Ben Casselman examines the problems around getting a statistical handle on how much work is being done outside traditional employment arrangements. "You can see the gig economy everywhere but in the statistics," he notes.
A Bureau of Labor Statistics report issued in early June found that temporary work, off-radar work as ride sharing, and other freelance labor have not diminished the prominence of the traditional job.
However, "[i]t is also possible that the new data understates real changes in the nature of work. The government’s standard tools for measuring employment have struggled to capture the shifting employment landscape," Casselman writes. Faculty Associate Kathrine Abraham pointed out that, "The questions on our standard surveys don't probe into the nature of these arrangements. We're not asking the right questions, and they're hard to answer anyway."