What is the purpose of this research?
We do not know much about how gig economy workers live, work and the financial issues they face. The purpose of this project is to clarify what are the financial implications of working through digital applications and the type of state support gig economy workers are able to access. Gig economy workers (namely self-employed workers who use Apps to find work) will be interviewed as part of this project in the UK, Italy and Sweden. This research will inform national and European attempts to reform social policies and address gig economy workers’ economic and working needs. The research is funded by the Economic Social Research Council (ESRC), a state-funded body that finances academic research.
Do I have to take part?
No. Your taking part is voluntary – you don’t have to speak to me if you don’t want to. The interview will last about one hour (sometimes they last more, but it will never last more than 100 minutes). You are also free to withdraw at any point before the interview, or within one month of the interview taking place. You are also free not to speak about any specific things you don’t want to talk about. If you want to withdraw, all you need to do is email, call or tell us in person. You will get a £20 / €20 / 400 SEK voucher as a thank you gift for taking part in the interview stage.
What happens if I take part?
Due to COVID-19, all the interviews will be conducted remotely. The researchers will use remote methods of conducting interviews that maximize participants’ privacy and minimize the risks of data breaches, such as video-calls through private numbers or protected applications (e.g. Zoom with password or Skype). The interview will be at a time convenient to you to make things easier. I will ask you to sign a digital consent form to make sure you are agreeing to take part, but you are free to withdraw any time before the interview or within one month of the interview taking place, as this consent form does not bind you to stay in the research project. I will then ask you some questions about your experiences of working through apps and your financial situation. These are open-ended questions, and you are welcome to discuss any relevant issues you want. I will ask you, for example, whether this month you could pay all your personal and work expenses or if you had to borrow money from the bank.
In order to analyse the material you shared with me I will need to record the audio of the interview. However, none of your personal information will be recorded in the interview. I will ask to share your personal information in the separate protected form of the digital consent so that you will not refer to personal information during the interview and no-one will be able to identify you from the audio recording. The audio recording without personal information is passed to the transcribing company that has signed a contract with us to keep the information fully confidential and not share it with any third parties (although, again, no-one will be able to identify you from the audio recording as this file is deprived on any personal information).
You may feel some strong emotions during or after the interview. I will give you contact details of organisations you can turn to if you feel you need support, and you are always welcome to contact me if you want to talk or discuss anything relating to the research.
Will what I tell you be confidential?
Yes, what you tell me will be kept confidential, and all dates, names and places will be changed in anything I publish or any talks I give. This is to make sure no-one can identify you or your family. However, if you tell me you or someone else are at risk of serious harm, I will be legally obliged to report this to the authorities. I will also need to inform the authorities if you tell me about any criminal offences that have not been previously reported. I will not ask you to name anyone close to you (such as your children), or give me any addresses. I will also not ask you to give your full address or other information about you. However, you might name people during your interview–in that case, I will remove this information when I transcribe the interview. If I am taking notes, I will not write down personal information. I will, however, need your name on the consent form and will store a way of contacting you, such as your email or phone number. I will not contact you for any matter unrelated to the research. For further details information about how your personal data will be protected, please see the attached Data Protection Essentials document.
What will happen afterwards?
Before the end of the research you will be asked if you want to stay for the second part of the research, which will consist in collecting additional information about you through an online application (this is optional and there is a separate consent form for this second phase). I will use the interviews to write academic papers, policy reports and present the project at conferences. I will also produce a report for the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). Again, I will not mention any personal information or any information that could identify you or your family. You are welcome to tell me if there’s any specific information you don’t want to be put into any reports, articles or presentations. All the open-access materials I produce from this research will be uploaded to my website, so you will be able to access them and read them easily. You can also contact me anytime for updates.
Who has approved this research?
This research has been approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the University of Birmingham. The reference number is: ERN_20-0147