Reversing the race to the bottom in the platform economy: the Fairwork approach

Adam Badger, Alessio Bertolini, Fabian Ferrari, Mark Graham and Funda Ustek Spilda

Chapter 28 in Handbook of Labour Geography, 2025, pp 468-480 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The platform economy is revolutionising how labour is organised and performed. In the case of cloudwork, labour is performed remotely online, with no need for geographical proximity to the platform, the client, or fellow colleagues. These characteristics are producing new geographies of work, with platforms reliant upon large numbers of contingent workers without any formal employment relationship in place. This is severely hampering labour's power to counterbalance capital. This chapter examines research undertaken by the international action research project Fairwork. Specifically, we explore some of the new labour geographies that platform work is generating by focusing upon three asymmetrical labour relations that exist between platforms and workers (informational, contractual, and financial). We then call attention to some of the current issues and challenges brought about by these new labour geographies whilst also reflecting upon the principles and pathways to change that might bring about a fairer platform economy.

Keywords: Platform work; Labour geography; Gig economy; Fairwork (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781785363399
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