Income generation on care work digital labour platforms

Abstract

Recently, a growing number of digital platforms have emerged that intermediate or facilitate connections between care workers and people requiring care. Platforms position themselves as a viable response to the ‘care crisis’, yet have been decried for driving down wages and exposing workers to greater risk and precarity. Unlike more transactional types of intermediated work such as ride-hailing or food delivery, the income of care workers depends not on pricing algorithms but on how much they work and the potential for individual agency in negotiating pay rates with clients. Drawing on three sources of data from a global digital platform business, this study asks how self-employed care workers enact agency in relation to income generation. The findings revealed evidence of three types of agentic action: establishing professional worth; assessing costs and maximizing income; and negotiating with clients. Agency was constrained, however, by the platform's architecture and client-related dynamics. The study provides insights into the nuanced dynamics of individual worker agency in relation to income, in a growing, feminized and largely devalued new market. The findings also demonstrate how platform businesses, despite not managing work or workers directly, play a significant role in the organization and distribution of work.