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The Uberisation of work: the challenge of regulating platform capitalism. A commentary

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  • Webster Edward

Abstract

Under platform capitalism a new business model and a new work order has emerged. The tech giants such as Uber, Amazon and Apple that drive this business model have unprecedented levels of power . This power lies in the hands of a few individuals who divest themselves from employment responsibilities through technology-enabled outsourcing and subcontracting practices that remotely manage their fragmented supply chains. A new form of algorithmic control is introduced where “workers” are managed through on line platforms, monitored indirectly and expected to produce measurable outputs. However, the model is generating open resistance across the globe and new ways of regulating these companies is emerging. Drawing on a range of recent publications I argue that to be effective these attempts at regulation will require a coordinated challenge from above as well as below. This requires a deeper understanding of the new forms of ownership in the platform economy, the nature of this new world of work and the responses being made by this global workforce.

Suggested Citation

  • Webster Edward, 2020. "The Uberisation of work: the challenge of regulating platform capitalism. A commentary," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(4), pages 512-521, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:irapec:v:34:y:2020:i:4:p:512-521
    DOI: 10.1080/02692171.2020.1773647
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    Cited by:

    1. Peter Hasle & Jan Vang, 2021. "Designing Better Interventions: Insights from Research on Decent Work," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 57(2), pages 58-70, April.
    2. María Barrero-Rescalvo & Ibán Díaz-Parra, 2024. "Short-term rentals’ supply-side structure and the struggle for rent appropriation: Insights from Andalusia, Spain," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 56(2), pages 508-524, March.
    3. Kaveri Medappa, 2023. "Rethinking Mutual Aid Through the Lens of Social Reproduction: How Platform Drivers Ride Out Work and Life in Bengaluru, India," Journal of South Asian Development, , vol. 18(3), pages 383-408, December.
    4. Helen M. Rand & Hanne M. Stegeman, 2023. "Navigating and resisting platform affordances: Online sex work as digital labor," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(6), pages 2102-2118, November.

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