Disconnecting labour: the impact of intra-platform algorithmic changes on the labour process and workers’ capacity to organise collectively

This article examines how gig economy platform companies, via algorithmic management, shape working conditions and collective organisation of food delivery couriers. Using qualitative data from one case study operating in a city in the United Kingdom, the study captures real-time intraplatform unilateral changes in algorithmic management to provide increased flexibility for couriers. Findings show algorithmic changes generating a reconfigured, fragmented and compliant workforce. As a result, couriers demonstrate different interests and motivations to work for the company, where disparities in the demands for improved working conditions hindered efforts for collective organising. This article argues that intraplatform algorithmic changes create affordances that companies can exploit to concentrate power over labour even when conceding some control over the labour process

'Chimneys don't belch out carnations!' The (in)tolerance of corporate hypocrisy: a case study of trust and community engagement strategies

The relationship between corporate hypocrisy and legitimacy has been articulated paradoxically in the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) literature. On the one hand, this literature articulates that when corporations engage in hypocrisy it erodes trust and encourages attacks upon legitimacy. On the other hand, CSR statements decoupled from core functions are an example of corporate hypocrisy that is justified through maintaining legitimacy in certain conditions. These diverse approaches in the literature are evidenced further in our case study analysis. We present a qualitative case study of how local community judgements of a corporate hypocrisy event and consequent community engagement strategies affect trust and corporate-community relations. The analysis shows that the community tolerates corporate hypocrisy to a degree. However, when hypocrisy becomes intolerable, and with the firm in question reverting to an absent community engagement strategy, this erodes legitimacy. This has implications for society's trust in business, corporate sustainability, and managerial practice

Exploring the shifting landscape of work and employment: the interplay between technology, flexibility, and regulation

COVID-19 accelerated ongoing changes in work and employment, leading to a growing number of non-traditional work arrangements. As a result, the traditional concepts of work and employment are becoming increasingly associated with a substantial surge in individuals engaging in self-employment without formal employment arrangements. Most of these workers lack access to capital and opportunities for building their reputation and typically carry out their daily work through algorithms. Consequently, employment arrangements have implications for both employees and employers. Notably, ‘self-employees’ don’t enjoy the benefits of workplace security, safety and well-being guaranteed by an employer. The rapid emergence of work without formal employment agreements has prompted discussions regarding the future of workers’ rights and well-being. This chapter critically appraises these issues

Disconnecting labour: the impact of intraplatform algorithmic changes on the labour process and workers' capacity to organise collectively

This article examines how gig economy platform companies, via algorithmic management, shape working conditions and collective organisation of food delivery couriers. Using qualitative data from one case study operating in a city in the United Kingdom, the study captures real-time intraplatform unilateral changes in algorithmic management to provide increased flexibility for couriers. Findings show algorithmic changes generating a reconfigured, fragmented and compliant workforce. As a result, couriers demonstrate different interests and motivations to work for the company, where disparities in the demands for improved working conditions hindered efforts for collective organising. This article argues that intraplatform algorithmic changes create affordances that companies can exploit to concentrate power over labour even when conceding some control over the labour process

‘We are not all the same’: the capacity of different groups of food delivery gig workers to build collective and individual power resources

This article explores how various groups of food delivery gig workers create and maintain distinct strategies to build collective and individual power resources, including institutional, associational, structural and mobility power. Drawing on 35 interviews with food delivery couriers, social media data and observations in a British city, this article provides rich empirical evidence on the power resources of groups of gig workers based on their nationality, dependence on gig work and right to work in the UK. It intersects workers’ labour market position and migrant (documented and undocumented) and national border regimes to understand varying levels of agency and power. In doing so, this article comparatively shows that differentiating inclusion and exclusion dynamics are intrinsically related to the capacity of workers to develop collective and individual power-building strategies that can improve their working lives