The Praxis of Platform Labour

The Relevance of Ethnographic Analyses of Digital Work Cultures

Authors

  • Heiner Heiland TU Darmstadt

Keywords:

Platform Labour;, Algorithms, Control of Labour, Ethnography, Micropolitics

Abstract

The article focuses on an ethnographic analysis of platform-mediated courier work. Participant-observation and digital ethnography are combined in order to gain a more varied insight into these forms of digital work cultures. Contrary to the often stated heteronomy of platform-mediated labour processes, this approach reveals both micro-political agency on the part of the workers, and forms of algorithmic control, which are primarily based on an intentional intransparency of the technological artefacts.

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Published

2020-12-01

How to Cite

Heiland, H. (2020). The Praxis of Platform Labour: The Relevance of Ethnographic Analyses of Digital Work Cultures. Berliner Blätter, 82, 17–28. Retrieved from https://berliner-blaetter.de/index.php/blaetter/article/view/1070