Page 71 - UDYAMA FINAL final for web

Sri Lanka confronts several cha- Global gig platforms, which are minimum wages, compensation
llenges in reaping the benefits of usually not being registered as in industrial accidents, and occu-
the gig economy. First, though the businesses in host countries, are pational diseases. Similarly, one
gig economy offers enormous difficult to be controlled by the of the prominent critics against
opportunities to Sri Lanka, there regulation and taxation system of gig platforms is the control they
is a potential threat of producing a the host country (CBSL, 2019). keep on allocating work to gig
set of unskilled gig workers who Since the most popular gig plat- workers. This condition marginal-
fail to attract high paid gigs. The forms are based in developed izes gig workers’ ability to choose
main reason behind this is the economies (Fiverr, Upwork, Air- the gig. Thus, there is a
absence of a strategic and inte- bnb etc…), it is a significant cha- paramount need to update exist-
grated approach to developing llenge for Sri Lanka to control the ing legislation and establish new
creative and high-tech profession- non-local gig platforms resulting laws to safeguard the gig workers'
als through the educational sys- in the inability to capture data social security and well-being.
tem. Therefore, Sri Lanka needs about the volume and nature of
to purposefully develop a digital- economic value additions taking The gig economy is transforming
ly competent workforce demand- place through such platforms the global economy's landscape,
ed by the gig economy by trans- resulting in a loss of potential tax specifically in terms of how the
forming its primary, secondary, earnings. Fourth, ensuring social work is getting done. With the
and tertiary education systems. security and the well-being of gig rising number of actors joining
Second, the digital infrastructure workers is another challenge. the gig world and the spread of
of the country is critical to tap the Though gig service providers are gig work into different industries,
worldwide gig market. Specifi- labeled gig workers, they are not the gig economy shows signs of
cally, to attract digital nomads to in an employment contract. Thus, becoming the mainstream econ-
use Sri Lanka as a destination and they are not safeguarded by omic model of the world. In this
Sri Lankans to work as gig prevailing labour legislation. This milieu, if address the challenges,
providers, Sri Lanka needs to ens- inherent nature of gig worker Sri Lanka has a great potential in
ure uninterrupted, cost-effective, contracts creates threats in prote- reaping the benefits of the rising
and robust digital infrastructure cting gig workers’ well-being in gig economy.
within the country. Third, there terms of the security of the work,
are regulatory and taxation issues minimum working conditions,
associated with the gig economy. benefits, retirement plans,

“

Sri Lanka needs to

purposefully develop a
digitally competent

workforce demanded by

the gig economy by

transforming its
primary, secondary, and

tertiary education

Dr. Rasika Priyankara systems
Senior Lecturer ”
Department of Business Management
Faculty of Management Studies
Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka