Reshaping Work Regional - Barcelona 2019 - Algorithms as subordination - Anna Ginés (ESADE)
Channel: Ouishare TV
Date: 2019-10-23

Algorithms as subordination. The role of technology in classifying workers in the platform economy.

Autora: Anna Ginès i Fabrellas (ESADE)

ABSTRACT: In the context of the sharing economy and the gig-economy, multiple App-based companies have emerged, which have significantly altered the way in which services are provided. Companies like Uber, Lift, Taskrabbit, Deriveroo, Glovo or Amazon Mechanical Turck have altered the essence of the sharing economy, going beyond the idea of exchange of underused goods and services to offer consumer services and goods.
These digital platforms, examples of postmodern capitalism, have introduced new forms of work that have altered the boundaries of Labour Law. Services that were previously provided by employees, can nowadays be entirely outsourced to independent contractors. Since the providers of services are formally considered self-employed workers, they are not protected by the labor and Social Security legislation.

The key to success of these companies is the division of their production in micro-tasks, the externalization of their entire production to a wide number of independent contractors through an App or webpage and the hiring of each service on-demand. Digital platforms create a new market place where consumers and providers of a service can easy interact and sophisticated algorithms allow instant connection of supply and demand. As a result, technology has allowed these companies to avoid hiring workers and crowdsource to provide their services entirely through self-employed workers.

Nevertheless, from the standpoint of Labor Law, the question that platform work arises is the correct classification of service providers as workers or independent contractors. This question has rose significant discussion among scholars and courts around the world. There is practically not one country where one cannot find contradictory positions among the literature or case-law regarding this issue. The United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Spain, etc. all have contradictory judicial and administrative decisions regarding the classification of service providers in the gig economy.

In this sense, the paper intends to contribute to the existing literature regarding the legal classification of service providers in digital platform. The paper argues that most of the platforms acting in the gig economy –Uber, Deliveroo, Glovo, Amazon Mechanical Turk, etc.– act as employers, hence misclassifying workers as independent contractors.

Nevertheless, the main research questions that the paper intends to answer is what is the role of technology in classifying workers in the platform economy. Specifically, the aim of the paper is to analyse what is the role of technology in the business model adopted by digital platforms. On the one hand, technology has enabled digital platforms that allow extremely fast connection between supply and demand and a business model that attributes workers direct control over their working time. However, on the other hand, the use of algorithms in assigning work can be perceived as a form of management and control characteristic on an employment relationship.
The main finding of the analysis is that technology plays a significant role in classifying service providers in platforms as workers. The platform itself must be considered the essential and nuclear infrastructure without which the intermediation between supply and demand could not be achieved. Furthermore, the use of algorithms in platforms acts as a clear form of subordination, as platform workers are rewarded or penalized by the algorithm based on their past activity.