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Reconsidering the Economic-Oriented Discourses of Precarious Work: Through a Case Study on Voluntary Nonstandard Workers

  • Korea Social Policy Review
  • Abbr : KSPR
  • 2020, 27(1), pp.89-127
  • DOI : 10.17000/kspr.27.1.202003.89
  • Publisher : Korean Association of Social Policy
  • Research Area : Social Science > Sociology > Medical / Welfare / Social policy
  • Received : January 13, 2020
  • Accepted : March 2, 2020
  • Published : March 31, 2020

Kim, Suyoung 1 Eun Sol Ha 1 Young Kim 2

1서울대학교
2행복나눔재단

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Many existing studies on precarious work have described nonstandard workers as those who become involuntarily subject to uncertain income and employment conditions. Contrary to the discourses, however, an increasing number of people are voluntarily opting for nonstandard labor like freelancing or gig work. This phenomenon cannot be explained by the current frame, which distinguishes the stability and instability of labor by economic standards such as employment, income, or social insurance subscription. In order to have a deeper understanding of the phenomenon, this study conducted in-depth interviews with 17 nonstandard workers who voluntarily left their former full-time jobs. The findings show that individual workers consider relational and existential values as well as economic conditions when choosing their jobs and that both regular employment and nonstandard work have precariousness in certain aspects. This study suggests that the economic-centered discourses of precarious work need to be extended to involve existential and relational aspects and that labor policies should be developed to reduce precariousness in both standard employments and nonstandard work.

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