One of Zohran Mamdani’s most harmful proposals is getting the least attention: his plan to restrict “gig” work – the freelancing that’s so popular across the Big Apple. Mamdani wants to wrap freelancing in so much red tape, it’ll be significantly harder for New Yorkers to work for themselves or get side income.
New Jersey, too, is flirting with severely limiting independent work. But whether it comes from Gracie Mansion or Trenton, a crackdown on gig work would hurt not just workers and those who hire them, but every New Yorker or New Jerseyan who relies on freelance workers in their daily lives.
As America’s biggest city, it should be no surprise that New Yorkers have a diversity of work arrangements. Studies before the pandemic found that more than a million New Yorkers freelance. Now at least 20% of working New Yorkers find gigs through apps…