It was during a regular webinar that I signed up for two weeks ago, at the very end of an informative presentation, that one particular question posed to the presenter suddenly piqued my interest. In a way that stirred a hint of angst in me, and I felt myself trying to push the feeling down.
It’s okay, people are entitled to their opinions.
Just ignore it, it’s a controversial point anyways. Don’t stir things up.
Even in all our years of schooling with its abundance of rigorous exercises to get us to speak our minds, I think only a handful really master it. If you’re like me, we have lots of thoughts and opinions, some you just end up repressing it, because you don’t want to be that person people talk about after class who just won’t let things go. Even after when most of my entire Master’s degree is to “critically analyze” literature and opinions, I have been getting good at this critical reflection, but not very good at actually talking about it.
After that presentation, I sat down on my desk that evening, conflicted and confused, as to whether I should send an email to the presenter to let her know my views. For years, I have thought I was a conflict-embracer (is there such a term? Don’t know) I thought I have mastered how to bring up conflicts, but I think friends who know me well might actually disagree. Opinions, yes. Criticisms, yes. Vocalizing them? Likely not. I’ll let it the distain percolate, the anger ferment in my mind, thank you very much.
When I finally sent out an email laying out my thoughts regarding the presentation, I felt a weight released in my mind. I am standing up for what I believe in. At the point, it doesn’t matter what that presenter thought or not, I did my part to stand up for something I believe in.
Which brings me to yesterday, I felt that anger and frustration again when I learned that the food delivery company, Foodora, would be closing its operations in Canada on May 11, 2020. Essentially, they are giving their two week notice to the country, telling the food couriers that help delivery food for over 3000 restaurants in Canada — that the already precarious jobs, are gone. Law professor David Doorey from York University wrote a piece shortly after to document the rights that a company Foodora has to close down its operations so abruptly, especially since it was announced just months ago that food courier workers are dependent workers, winning a landmark case in Ontario that workers had the right to unionize. The uncanny timing has many scholars and analyst looking at this sudden move maybe as a way to thwart the efforts to unionization. That was huge.
I should explain briefly why I suddenly seem to have an obsession over food delivery couriers. I have been researching the platform economy for the large part of my Master’s research focus, and that is what I hope to do as I continue to my doctorate program, as an emerging researcher in labour policy at the intersection of migration, and gender. At the core of is my frustration with how the privilege of some is accumulated at the cost of many of the underprivileged. The example of Foodora is directly related to this relationship that I have grown to be so vigilant and alert about. As we are venturing in these uncharted, chaotic times, where it is our natural tendency to stick to familiarity and what we know, the actions of Foodora once again shows that in times of distress, these giant companies are still profiting off the piecework aspects of the gig economy.
The gig economy has been on my mind for so long, and anything remotely that catches my attention to its precarity and inequality quickly takes up my attention. And during the age of a global pandemic, we see that it is more precarious then ever, when workers are looking for security from governments to help them with emergency payments and support systems, gig workers are often left out of that equation. Researchers have found that reported that the proportion of gig workers were considerably higher amongst immigrants, especially recent immigrants (reported at 9.7 percent), compared to Canadian-born populations at 5.3 percent. As a migration scholar, this is troubling and worrisome for me, and I wonder how our economic and work systems can create more equitable opportunities, with gainful employment available for more.
This one story will would not be end of the measures that companies will use to save themselves in economic turmoil, while justifying their reasons to divert accusations that they are interfering with everyday citizens and workers that they are the ones paying the price for convenience.
In this time of quarantine, we finished all three seasons of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. In one episode of season three, as our titular character Mrs. Maisel prepares to give do a commercial for a politician with shady leanings, she initially justified it as a just a paycheque to her father. Her father started to leave her be, but his conscience prevailed and he looked at her daughter with one lamenting look and said to her “If you’re gonna have a voice, you’d better be careful what that voice says.”
There are many times I just want to dull the voice inside of me, because of the innate desire to be liked, to not offend. But maybe if anything, now is the time to make that change. If we are going to have a voice, let’s speak out on issues that matter, or open up space for others. If we are going to have the luxury of choice, let’s also be careful what we are choosing to support and endorse with her money and support. Let go out of the stupor to be righteous and better-than-thou attitude — that serves nobody. I want to learn to lend a voice to injustices and inequalities that I see in this world, and moving past just hoping that voice will lead to change.
