Weekends are time when things slow down a little. Your weekend shouldn’t be two more regular workdays. That’s a sure road to burnout. Take time to refresh yourself. Take time for something different. Take time for some of that reading you can’t find time for during the week.

Here are choice articles on hot leadership topics culled from the business schools, the business press and major consulting firms. This week there are articles about the gig economy.

From Daisuke Wakabayashi: Google’s Shadow Work Force: Temps Who Outnumber Full-Time Employees

“High-tech companies have long promoted the idea that they are egalitarian, idyllic workplaces. And Google, perhaps more than any other, has represented that image, with a reputation for enviable salaries and benefits and lavish perks. But the company’s increasing reliance on temps and contractors has some Google employees wondering if management is undermining its carefully crafted culture. As of March, Google worked with roughly 121,000 temps and contractors around the world, compared with 102,000 full-time employees, according to an internal document obtained by The New York Times.”

From Eduardo Porter: Tech Is Splitting the U.S. Work Force in Two

“A small group of well-educated professionals enjoys rising wages, while most workers toil in low-wage jobs with few chances to advance.”

From the London School of Economics: Not the gig economy: on the immense value of the growing freelancer ‘project economy’

“The UK has five times as many highly skilled ‘project’ freelancers as ‘gig’ freelancers, writes Andrew Burke”

From Bastian Lehmann: Postmates CEO: Gig workers deserve a better deal than we have given them

“The gig economy faces challenges today that technology alone cannot fix. On-demand delivery and transportation has provided unprecedented flexibility to millions of workers and turbocharged small businesses and local economies. But recent strikes and calls for better pay and benefits underscore the need for change. So do the conflicting signals from courts, regulators and lawmakers about whether gig workers should be considered traditional employees or independent contractors, or if they should be under a new category.”

From Charles Towers-Clark: The Uberization Of Work: Pros And Cons Of The Gig Economy

“As the gig economy has grown it has become an intrinsic part of our digital society. But its meteoric growth has not left much room for forethought about the impact it might have on society and employment, and there is still much debate around the benefits and risks of this way of working. Working more flexibly on a job-by-job basis is touted by some as the ultimate in employment, and provides a lot of freedom for those that desire it. However, part-time workers do not have the same benefits as full-time employees do, leaving them without the job security and peace of mind that nine-to-fivers enjoy. Furthermore, large companies are accused of profiting from worker instability.”

From Dan Blacharski: Gig Economy, The Side Hustle and the Changing Digital Landscape

“The term ‘gig economy’ is positioned by its many advocates and detractors as part of the new economy, a byproduct of globalization and the Internet. It’s true that the gig economy has been further enabled by digital platforms which make it easier to collaborate on a virtual basis; and by globalization which makes it easier for a company in South Bend, Indiana to employ virtual workers in Delhi. But in fact, it’s nothing new.”

Book Suggestions

The WEIRD CEO: How to lead in a world dominated by Artificial Intelligence by Charles Towers-Clark

Gigged: The End of the Job and the Future of Work by Sarah Kessler

Every Monday, I do a blog post about business reading and business books. Follow this link to my review of Trillion Dollar Coach.