Blockchain developers cannot be blamed for not keeping up with the times. The unprecedented shock in world labor markets during the COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating the underemployment trends of recent decades. Signs of an oncoming unemployment recovery are driving citizens to turn to all types of digital piecework in the absence of social security and conventional employment benefits.
To withstand the sharp economic downturn and unpredictable pandemic lockdowns, 41% of companies in a recent survey said they wanted to expand their use of contractors for specialized jobs. Even before the current crisis, the global gig economy is expected to reach $ 455 billion by 2023, according to a 2019 Mastercard study, which urged entrepreneurs to capitalize on “the opportunity.” The outcome of the recent legal challenges to this employment model still seems uncertain.
In this context, Telos is launching a new gig economy platform called TelosTask, applying blockchain technology to familiar models such as PeoplePerHour and Upwork. Built on the Telos blockchain and created by the MydAppr team, the new peer-to-peer platform will directly connect “task givers” to “task takers” or gig workers and allow them to coordinate the completion of “micro-” and “macro-concerts. “.
Telos expects the new platform to be used by gig workers in a wide range of industries, from social media and writing assignments to graphic design and video production. The platform uses an escrow system to automate secure payments. In a statement, Telos chief blockchain architect Douglas Horn explained the impetus for creating the platform:
“This is the true power of high-capacity blockchain. Now anyone can instantly create a free Telos account with an easy-to-remember name and log into it with no more hassle than logging into Twitter. It is a platform ready for mass adoption that is desperately needed right now as people try to find new reliable ways to earn income and run business in the post-COVID world. “
TelosTask team leader Destiny Marshall said the use of smart contracts offers “an integrated trust system” that will ensure “the work is fairly compensated,” pointing to “the developing world” as an area. of particular demand for tasks-based employment.
Telos is not the only blockchain developer to seize the unprecedented opportunity of the 2020 employment crisis. In a recent interview with Cointelegraph, an IOHK product director said he believes Cardano (ADA) was, in a unique way, contributing to the economy concert through the staking pool, which are developing into a form of business for their operators.