Who really benefits from the online gig economy?

It’s estimated that over 160 million global workers are registered on online gig economy platforms but only a small fraction of them are working at any point in time. Dr Catherine Thomas writes that despite this, gig workers who are hired capture a significant share of market surplus. These findings challenge calls to reclassify freelancers as employees. Traditional employment regulation would not benefit the gig workers who need market protection the most—those who don’t find work.