Trebor Scholz: Stuck in the gig economy? Try platform co-ops instead | TED

譯者: Ryan Yang 審譯者: Shelley Tsang 曾雯海

這是埃斯梅拉達·弗洛雷斯（Esmeralda Flores）。

她在紐約做居家清潔。

跟大部分居家清潔工一樣， 她用技術平台或應用程式

Meet Esmeralda Flores.

She is a home cleaner in New York City.

跟客戶連絡。

但和其他居家清潔工不一樣的是， 她一小時能賺 25 美金

And like so many home cleaners, she's using a tech platform, an app,

薪水比她之前在公司多了一倍

to connect to clients.

But unlike other home cleaners, she's making $25 an hour,

讓她能夠養活自己。

沒有會改變她薪水或工作時數

which is twice as much as she used to make at her previous company.

的演算法在這的技術平台上

And she makes a living wage.

所以她的生活還算穩定。

There's no algorithmic boss at her company

每週這些員工會在公司

that changes the pay or hours from under her feet,

開會討論公司管理

so she has some stability for her family.

決定運營方向。

And every week, the workers at this company are meeting

埃斯梅拉達 接受了商務和管理訓練

to decide how to run this company.

以及衝突解決的訓練。

They decide on the operations.

這幫助了她個人和自己公司角色中的成長。

Esmeralda receives training in finance and management,

這時你可能會好奇：

and in conflict resolution.

這到底是什麼公司？

And it really makes her grow as a person within that company.

我從來沒聽說過有技術平台提供這麼好的福利。

他們到底怎麼辦到的？

So now, you might be asking, like,

答案是 Up and Go

"What kind of company is that?

它不是一般的技術平台

I've never heard of a tech platform that gives benefits like that.

它是一個“合作平台”

How do they do that?"

意思就是員工和居家清潔工

So the answer is Up and Go,

and it's not your typical tech platform.

共享這個平台的治理和擁有權

It’s what is called a “platform cooperative,”

他們共同決定工資，共同決定福利

which means that the workers, the house cleaners,

他們共同決定顧客要付的價錢

are sharing the governance and the ownership of this platform.

它是一個民主的工作場所

They are deciding on wages, they are deciding on benefits,

我們現在需要多一點這種民主的工作場所

they are deciding what customers are charged.

如果你覺得技術平台無法給員工足以生活的工資

And it's a truly democratic workplace,

and I think that's really what we need more of right now.

如果你覺得它無法讓員工自行管理

If you think of tech platforms denying workers living wages,

以及同時擴張經濟的不平等

if you think about them denying them the right to organize,

我覺得”合作平台“能夠改變你的看法

and expanding economic inequality in the process,

我知道，你們有些人聽到“合作社”

I think platform co-ops are one way to change that.

會馬上想到一個和我一樣的白人

站在柏克萊的食品合作社

I know, I know, that for some of you, when you hear the word "co-op,"

賣你素食乳酪，對不對?

you immediately think of a white guy like me

(笑聲)

我也很喜歡食品合作社

standing in a food cooperative in Berkeley,

但它不是唯一一種合作社的服務

合作社其實就是一群有共同需求的人

selling you vegan cheese, right?

(Laughter)

And I love food cooperatives,

but they are not the only type of cooperative.

那個需求可以是素食乳酪或居家清潔

然後他們一起來解決這個需求

Co-ops are really just a group of people who have a shared need,

那可能是一個生意

be that vegan cheese or housecleaning,

and they come together to address that need.

或有時，可能是別的型態

但是它都是關於共享的擁有權及民主的治理

And that might be a business,

所以合作社不是甚麼新東西 你們都有聽過

and sometimes, it takes on other forms,

but it's always about shared ownership and democratic governance.

我們現在所知道的消費者合作社

在1844年時就存在了，那時在北英格蘭的紡織工

So co-ops are nothing new. You've heard about them.

The consumer co-ops as we know them today

聯合了起來因為他們的資工被減半

exist since 1844, when textile weavers in the north of England

他們的家人也面臨飢餓

所以他們決定一起開店賣麥片，糖，和麵粉

came together because their pay was cut in half

and their families were starving,

一個合作社

so they decided to sell oatmeal and sugar and flour through a store,

現在，不只是食品的合作社 農業的合作社也相當大

所以你可能有聽過 Land O’Lakes 或 Ocean Spray

a cooperative.

Today, cooperatives of agriculture, not just food co-ops, are quite big,

所以，合作平台從久經考驗的200年合作社

so you may have heard of Land O'Lakes or Ocean Spray.

抽出最好的部分

And so, platform cooperatives take the best from these tried-and-true models,

與新型的數位平台

結合起來

the 200-year-old model of the cooperative

是甚麼讓合作平台獨一無二?

and the much younger model of the digital platform,

它是以一群擁有相等決定權的人構成的

and bring them together.

So here's what makes them different.

他們真的在分享公司的決定

They are made up of a group of people who get an equal vote in decision-making,

像是消費著要付多少

and they are genuinely sharing that process,

員工的薪水

還有，資料是否要被收集

so when it comes to how much customers should be charged,

及資料要賣給誰

還有另一個讓合作平台不同的地方

how much workers should be paid,

and also, whether or not data should be collected

就是它正在規模化平等

and to whom they are sold.

拿 埃斯梅拉達·弗洛雷斯 的處境

And there is another thing that makes them different,

她在清潔產業工作

which is that they are scaling equality.

那裡每年有著75%的營業額

And so, take Esmeralda Flores.

埃斯梅拉達 一開始就待在 Up and Go 了

That's where she works in the cleaning industry,

所以待了大概三年

which has an annual turnover of 75 percent.

她待在那公司最大的原因

So Esmeralda has been with Up and Go almost since its beginning,

就是賺得比較多

這很重要的原因是

so for three years.

And one of the reasons that she stuck with the company

科技平台一般會收25%到50%的佣金

is that she was paid more.

So that is significant in the context of,

對移民非常誇張的多

typical tech platforms would take between 25 and 50 percent commission,

況且移民佔了零工經濟的一大部分

which is an exorbitant amount for immigrants,

所以在 Up and Go 的女員工決定收5%的佣金

who make up the majority of the gig economy workforce.

用來操作平台和付信用卡帳單

So the women at Up and Go decided to take five percent commission,

95%的錢給員工

which they use to run the platform and pay for credit card bills.

公司可以這麼做

And 95 percent go to the women, go to the workers themselves.

可以付 埃斯梅拉達 那麼多的原因

是他們沒有義務為了股東而加倍利潤

And one reason that the company can do that,

that Esmeralda can be paid so much,

還有另一個讓合作平台不一樣的地方

is that there's no fiduciary duty to the shareholders to maximize profit.

就是公司裡所有人都一起擁有的

是一個共享的擁有權

And here's another thing that makes platform cooperatives different:

也代表軟體的智慧財產權

it is that everybody at this company owns it together,

也是共享的

所以代表他們可以創設一個公司的集體

so it's a shared ownership,

which means that also the intellectual property of the software

像一個社會專營權

is owned together.

擴張公司

That means that they can create a small network of companies,

來跟大科技公司競爭

like a social franchise,

最後，看在 Up and Go

and scale up this company,

的員工大部分都是拉丁美洲的移民

to then compete against large tech companies.

如果他們是一般零工經濟平台

And lastly, consider that Up and Go

然後他們要尋找風險投資資金

is made up mostly of immigrants from Latin America,

那麼研究顯示

and if they were a typical gig-economy platform

移民女性帶領的團隊找到風險投資資金

and they were out to look for venture-capital funding,

then the research shows us very clearly

的機率非常的低，在個位數的百分點

that the chances of these minority-women-led founder teams

代表這些女性從頭就沒辦法

to find venture-capital funding are very slim, in the single percentile,

創造一的平台

或在科技產業的創業家增加一點多元性

meaning that these women would have never been even able

所以現今，有幾百個像 Up and Go 的合作平台

to build a platform in the first place,

or add some much needed diversity to the tech founders' club.

在世界各地

它們有...

So, today, there are hundreds of platform co-ops like Up and Go,

它們有多種功能

它們功能好因為危機時刻時有彈性

all over the world,

and they work.

And they work in more ways than one.

它們有生產性

它們能保留員工久一點

They work because they are more resilient in times of crisis,

而且多數時候，它們付的比較多

所以我真的覺得合作平台是一個比較好的選擇

they are more productive,

they retain workers longer,

這就是為們麼我幾年前和一些朋友

and often, they pay better.

So I really believe that platform co-ops are a better, fairer alternative,

創建了 Platform Cooperativism Consortium (合作平台財團)

可以拿來繞口令了

and that's why a few years ago, together with a few friends,

在紐約市的新學院

基本上，我們在幫助和支持合作平台

I started the Platform Cooperativism Consortium --

try to say that three times, fast --

和全球各地其他的數位合作計畫

at The New School in New York City.

我們在超過30個國家與500個計劃和生意合作

And essentially, what we do is we support platform cooperatives,

讓我給你嚐嚐我們究竟在做甚麼

digital cooperative projects, all over the world.

我有兩個特別喜歡的例子

We are working with 500 projects and businesses in over 30 countries.

一個是 Co-op Ride

它是一個由3500多個司機們共同擁有的計程車平台

But let me just give you a bit of a taste of this.

I have two examples that are really close to my heart.

One is Co-op Ride,

他們比其他的叫車平台

which is a driver-owned taxi platform with some 3,500 drivers

賺多10到30%

乘客也少付5%

that make between 10 and 30 percent more

儘管它是一個非常新的公司

than the drivers on these large ride-hailing platforms.

它已經是美國裡數一數二大的員工合作公司

The passengers pay five percent less.

第二個是 Fairbnb (與知名租屋平台 Airbnb 相似)

And already, despite this being a very new company,

它是一個以社區為中心的另外短期租屋平台

it's already one of the largest worker cooperatives in the United States.

即將在120個城市和小鎮

Second, Fairbnb,

which is a community-focused alternative to short-term rental platforms

和4500個雇主開放出租

Fairbnb 一半的佣金會捐給社區服務

and will soon be available in 120 cities and villages

其中一個是熱那亞的食品配送中心

with over 4,500 hosts.

Half of Fairbnb's commission goes to community projects.

我知道，你一定覺得

One of those is a food-distribution center in Genoa, Italy.

當你聽到 Up and Go, Fairbnb, Co-op Ride

你可能覺得

Now, I know, I know, you might be wondering,

“這怎麼不會亂七八糟?”

你們這些創業家肯定在想:

when you hear about Up and Go, Fairbnb and Co-op Ride,

“天呀，民主的工作場所?”

答案是: “它們和其他公司在做一樣的事情”

you might be wondering,

"How is this not a total mess?"

So the entrepreneurs among you must be thinking,

就是它們在招聘管理

"God, democratic workplace?"

和聘請科技產業員工

And the answer is, "Well, they do what everybody else is doing,"

但是有一個很大的差別，對不對?

就是操作的規則是大家決定的

which is they are hiring management.

And they are hiring tech workers.

所以管理層執行的規則

But there's one big difference, right?

是公司裡所有人一起決定的

And that is that the rules of operation are decided by all.

我和你們介紹了在勞工產業的合作平台

So the management executes the rules

還有在運輸，流動，和短期租屋

that were actually decided by all the people in this company.

I've told you about platform co-ops mostly in the labor sector,

但是它們也可以改變一個產業

像是護理產業

and also transportation, mobility and short-term rental,

藝術文化，高等教育

but they can also transform entire sectors,

和數據經濟

such as the care sector,

想像一下，如果我們的數據是共同管理的

culture and the arts, higher education

數據信託合作社

and the data economy.

數據合作社

I mean, just imagine, if our data would be managed cooperatively,

或者是想像一個社交媒體的合作社

但是使用者擁有那個平台

cooperative data trusts,

data cooperatives.

然後一起決定要怎麼處裡那些數據

Or imagine a social-media cooperative,

那些數據要被收集和要賣給誰

where the users own the platform

一個沒有義務為股東而

and decide what is done with the data,

加倍利潤的平台

which data are collected and to whom they are sold,

所以你能真的有隱私的澄清造構

So one where there is no fiduciary duty to shareholders,

把利益給做出那些數據的人

to maximize profits,

so that you can actually build in privacy and transparency

我知道我們現在在矽谷旁邊

and really bring the benefits back to those who actually generated the data.

所以我相信，你們很多會想:

“我很懷疑你介紹的”

So I know we are here, near Silicon Valley,

“它們永遠沒辦法擴張，對不對?”

so I can see that, I'm sure, for many of you,

我這幾句話我已經聽得耳熟能詳了

you will think, "Wow, I'm not so sure about this.

但是它們真的無法，對不對?

它不像一般的矽谷公司，能一直擴張

I mean, this would just never scale, right?"

你錯了，它的確可以

I've heard this many times.

Up and Go 的銷售量從2018到2019

And it doesn't, right?

It doesn't scale like traditional Silicon Valley companies.

增加了 97%

Well, it kind of does.

但是那不是它的目的

Up and Go's sales increased by 97 percent,

合作平台的目的不是要上市

from 2018 to 2019,

也不是要加倍利潤

but that's really not the objective.

他們擴張的方式不一樣

它比不使用網路的公司更負擔的起公司的擴張

The platform cooperatives are not about going public,

they are not about maximizing profits.

They scale differently,

它們創造一個公司的集體

they scale more affordably than brick-and-mortar cooperatives.

然後與大公司競爭

它們擴張得比較快

They scale by creating networks of companies

因為它們的合作平台可以在任何地方

它們也擴張了民主

因為它能用加密貨和區塊鏈來去中心化

that then compete against large companies.

They scale more quickly,

because their co-op can be anywhere in the world,

這就是為甚麼我想要在法學院和商學院

and they scale democracy,

because they can be decentralized through crypto networks and blockchain.

的導師教這種平台模型

這就是為甚麼我想要創業家

And that is why I want instructors to teach about this model

做一個合作平台，而不是一個傳統的技術平台

in law schools and business schools.

這就是為甚麼我想要恆溫箱包含這個模型

That's why I want entrepreneurs to start one

instead of another traditional tech platform.

以及不同的協會使用合作平台

這就是為甚麼我想要道德社會投資者

And that’s why I want incubators to include this model

考慮合作平台來創造一個平等的未來

and also unions to start platform cooperatives.

And that’s why I want ethical social impact investors

我不是來和你說

to consider them and create an amazing legacy of equality.

合作平台能根除經濟部平等

Now, I'm not here to tell you

它沒辦法，對不對?

但我們需要的是經濟裡的多元性

that this one model will eradicate economic inequality forever.

我們需要小型，工會化，私人的企業

It's not, right?

我們需要員工擁有權

But what we need is more variety in the economy.

我們需要合作平台

我們面臨很大的挑戰

We need small, unionized private businesses,

但是這會給我希望

當市場崩塌

we need employee ownership,

政府的安全網也分解

and we need platform cooperatives.

We face big challenges.

But here's what gives me a lot of hope.

人民會開始互相支持，對不對?

When markets fail

人們會開創食物合作社

and the safety nets of governments break down,

才能在災害時填飽肚子

people turn to each other, right?

他們會開創合作平台

People start to cooperate by forming food cooperatives

才能清房子來賺一點錢

so that they can feed themselves during a crisis.

當市場和政府

They start to form platform cooperatives

無法解決結構性種族歧視及不平等

so that they can clean homes and still make a living wage.

人們會開創機構

And when markets and governments

for too long failed to address structural racism and inequality,

像是 “黑豹 兒童免費早餐計畫”

或是 AFL-CIO，美國最大的的工會聯合會

people form institutions,

like the Black Panthers' Free Breakfast Program for Children

我們看見了民主

and the AFL-CIO, the largest federation of unions in the United States.

或是參與式民主的心願

傳播到世界各地

So we saw democracy,

現在，是時候傳播到我們的工作場所了

or the aspiration to participatory democracy,

謝謝大家

spread across countries around the world,

(鼓掌)

and now, it's time for it to spread in the workplace.

Thank you.

(Applause)