The global gig economy: Towards a planetary labour market?

Graham, Mark; Anwar, Mohammad Amir

doi:10.5210/fm.v24i4.9913

Cited by 119 publications

(121 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…As a general tendency and beyond one-off revelations, this contributes to keeping micro-work far from the gaze of the general public and from the agenda of policy-makers. Out of the reach of institutional regulations, subject only to the forces of a market by an excess supply of workers (Graham and Anwar, 2019), it remains structurally unprotected and insufficiently paid.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The trainer, the verifier, the imitator: Three ways in which human platform workers support artificial intelligence

2020

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This paper sheds light on the role of digital platform labour in the development of today’s artificial intelligence, predicated on data-intensive machine learning algorithms. Focus is on the specific ways in which outsourcing of data tasks to myriad ‘micro-workers’, recruited and managed through specialized platforms, powers virtual assistants, self-driving vehicles and connected objects. Using qualitative data from multiple sources, we show that micro-work performs a variety of functions, between three poles that we label, respectively, ‘artificial intelligence preparation’, ‘artificial intelligence verification’ and ‘artificial intelligence impersonation’. Because of the wide scope of application of micro-work, it is a structural component of contemporary artificial intelligence production processes – not an ephemeral form of support that may vanish once the technology reaches maturity stage. Through the lens of micro-work, we prefigure the policy implications of a future in which data technologies do not replace human workforce but imply its marginalization and precariousness.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The trainer, the verifier, the imitator: Three ways in which human platform workers support artificial intelligence

2020

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“…Even when platforms effectively monitor workers' residence, for example by requiring formal proof of ID at registration, they typically prefer to showcase their large, global reservoir as a whole. In this way, they expose micro-workers to broad competition, producing an over-supply of labour, as already documented in the case of qualified freelancing (Graham & Anwar, 2019), and keep remunerations low, in the interest of clients.…”

Section: The Data Reported By Micro-work Companies Are Registrationsmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…We contend that this very figure has strong implications for both theory and policy. Like the freelancers studied by Graham & Anwar (2019), these micro-workers constitute a large pool of labour power that platforms can advertise to attract clients. In two-sided markets such as these, higher numbers on one side (micro-workers) attract participation on the other side (clients) to the benefit of the platform (which typically charges fees to clients).…”

Section: Why Our Methods Are Nevertheless Helpfulmentioning

confidence: 99%

Counting ‘micro-workers’: societal and methodological challenges around new forms of labour

Tubaro¹,

Ludec²,

Casilli³

2020

Work Organisation, Labour &Amp; Globalisation

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'Micro-work' consists of fragmented data tasks that myriad providers execute on online platforms. While crucial to the development of data-based technologies, this little visible and geographically spread activity is particularly difficult to measure. To fill this gap, we combined qualitative and quantitative methods (online surveys, in-depth interviews, capture-recapture techniques, and web traffic analytics) to count micro-workers in a single country, France. On the basis of this analysis, we estimate that approximately 260,000 people are registered with micro-work platforms. Of these some 50,000 are 'regular' workers who do micro-tasks at least monthly and we speculate that using a more restrictive measure of 'very active' workers decreases this figure to 15,000. This analysis contributes to research on platform labour and the labour in the digital economy that lies behind artificial intelligence.

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“…Nevertheless, they generate competition between workers worldwide, driving down remunerations and shifting bargaining power toward clients -usually tech companies based in developed countries. Geography plays a role that, "rarely bolster(s) both the structural and associational power of workers" (Graham and Anwar, 2019).…”

Section: Platform Economy and Digital Labormentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital inequalities 3.0: Emergent inequalities in the information age

Robinson¹,

Schulz²,

Dunn³

et al. 2020

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Marking the 25th anniversary of the “digital divide,” we continue our metaphor of the digital inequality stack by mapping out the rapidly evolving nature of digital inequality using a broad lens. We tackle complex, and often unseen, inequalities spawned by the platform economy, automation, big data, algorithms, cybercrime, cybersafety, gaming, emotional well-being, assistive technologies, civic engagement, and mobility. These inequalities are woven throughout the digital inequality stack in many ways including differentiated access, use, consumption, literacies, skills, and production. While many users are competent prosumers who nimbly work within different layers of the stack, very few individuals are “full stack engineers” able to create or recreate digital devices, networks, and software platforms as pure producers. This new frontier of digital inequalities further differentiates digitally skilled creators from mere users. Therefore, we document emergent forms of inequality that radically diminish individuals’ agency and augment the power of technology creators, big tech, and other already powerful social actors whose dominance is increasing.

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The global gig economy: Towards a planetary labour market?

Cited by 119 publications

References 6 publications

The trainer, the verifier, the imitator: Three ways in which human platform workers support artificial intelligence

The trainer, the verifier, the imitator: Three ways in which human platform workers support artificial intelligence

Counting ‘micro-workers’: societal and methodological challenges around new forms of labour

Digital inequalities 3.0: Emergent inequalities in the information age

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