
BlueCrew (YC S15) Provides Workers for the On-Demand World - dalton
http://techcrunch.com/2015/07/08/bluecrew/
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mcaserta
Hello guys, this is Michele, one of the co-founders of BlueCrew :) Feel free
to ask any question!

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7Figures2Commas
The focus of this article is baffling. Lots of temporary staffing agencies,
perhaps the majority in certain states, classify their workers as employees.

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mcaserta
We all agree that staffing agencies classify workers as employees. And that's
the right thing to do. The focus is on the on-demand economy. Very few on-
demand platform decided to go for the w2 route instead of the 1099 model. I
might be wrong, but I can think of 3 in total

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7Figures2Commas
No offense, but the use of "on-demand economy" appears to be little more than
marketing spin. Lots of established temp agencies can accommodate companies
with short-term needs and deliver warm bodies quickly.

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mcaserta
No offense at all. I am obviously biased. If this was true though, our
customers would have not left traditional agencies for us. They all told us
they did it for the same reasons: faster and easier to use. The way we manage
our workforce is also fundamentally different and better for the workers ;)

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toomuchtodo
Do you have published metrics showing that your model is better for the
workers?

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mcaserta
If you specify what kind of metrics you are looking for, happy to provide
them. Ping me at michele@bluecrewjobs.com In general, 1099 are not covered by
worker's comp and end up paying 7% more taxes. At a traditional staffing
agency, a worker is asked to show-up in the office on Monday and declare
her/his availability for the week. He is then called an pushed to a shift.
Often they are never called. Opposite to them, we leave complete freedom to
workers and allow them to set their own schedule

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samcheng
This sounds a lot like Wonolo. And also similar to the traditional temp
agencies like Manpower.

How is BlueCrew different than these incumbents?

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mcaserta
WoNoLo is a great company, but it's a 1099 model. It is difficult to justify
how a low complexity worker can be a contractor. To be a contractor you need
to have done a personal investment, cannot be trained and cannot be working on
a shift. This exposes both the customer and the employee to a high level of
risks. The employee does not have the needed insurance coverage. The customer
is at risk of worker's misclassification, fines and costly claims. Compared to
a traditional staffing agency, we have lower costs of operations. We showed
our product to a quite a few people that worked ad ManPower and told us that
we are faster, provide a better interface/experience. I hope they are right :)

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tomasien
This is great! Zen99 and Painless1099 are both working on providing less
complexity for workers that stay 1099 and the value is obvious, this goes
above and beyond in a way that seems appealing to both sides. Super
interesting developments happening for contractors.

