Hybrid Employment and the Future of Work
In a world of uncertainties, it is becoming more unrealistic to categorise employment statuses of a working population into the dichotomies of formal sector and informal sector employment. Notably, the frequency and volume of job losses during the COVID-19 pandemic contributes to the increasingly speculative behaviour of the labour force. Consequently, human resources employed in specialised formal sectors of domestic and global economies may have diversified interests and investments in aspects of the informal economy or other formal sectors. This gives rise to what I term the phenomenon of 'hybrid employment'. This reality has implications for governance institutions at the individual, household, firm, government and global level. More pungent is the effect on time poverty and health of the labour force. We can rethink and shape the present nature and future of work for the sustainability of human development. Photo credit: Deloitte