Haven’t you heard about the new or modern entrepreneur also called a renter? That is the term Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize economist, has termed. It describes those who charge rent from the economy. In other words, they are the people who manage companies like Uber.
These renters allow people to work for them by taking off an unreasonable amount of money from them for their management. For example, on average, Uber’s drivers earn $125 per week. In my opinion, this must be supplementary income for them, whereas for taxi drivers, it is their main income and they are vetted drivers.
Of course, other companies like tutoring ones (too numerous to name) do similarly. People who pay for their children to be tutored will be charged upwards of $70 to $80 per hour. The tutor who actually does the job, however, may only earn a third of that fee. Lots of turnover. That’s why much tutoring is done privately by bona fide teachers and grad students, etc.
So whenever you think that being an entrepreneur is honest work, think about the kind of business practices used and how the workers are treated before using this kind of service.
—Elaine Peters
