This study aims to describe food delivery workers experiences in the gig economy of a specific company, their relationship with the trade union, and their thoughts on their future, within and outside the industry. The empirical data consists of seven semi-structured interviews. The purpose will be answered with help of the theoretical concepts of precariat, dependency, algorithmic control, and aspirations. Previous research in algorithmic control and the precariat shows that the freedom that the work provides, the so-called flexibility, exists under the algorithmic control, but isn’t considered positive for everyone. Those who benefit from flexibility are those who have other occupations, and they are the ones who are more likely to be satisfied with the work. At the same time, the flexible work can be negative for others, with negative impact on their mental health, which means that they are less to be satisfied with the work and they experience the precarious to a greater extent. This study shows that the workers are exposed to insecure work through mental and physical risks, which are the results of the conditions that the algorithmic control and the company produces. The workers with several occupations experience the flexible work as something positive. There is also a culture of silence in the company, where those with permanent contracts are those who try to make a change in the insecure work. Those with short- term contracts are afraid of being sanctioned by the company. The union and the company maintain a precariousness for the workers by not meeting them on their terms. The workers future plans and aspirations are dependent and affected by their Swedish language skills.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:lnu-109144 |
| Date | January 2021 |
| Creators | Mikuljan, Kristina |
| Publisher | Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för samhällsstudier (SS) |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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