The labor dynamics of the gig economy, as analyzed in the previous section, frequently intersect with class, gender, and racial inequalities (Van Doorn, 2017). Within this framework, racialization operates within the broader nexus of digital society, platform capitalism, and racial capitalism, conceptualizing Internet technologies not merely as instruments of interaction but as sociopolitical regimes in their own right. While digital technologies have expanded and reshaped social relations, they are also embedded within a racialized social hierarchy. According to McMillan Cottom (2020), this dynamic is articulated through a mechanism of ‘predatory inclusion,’ whereby organizational strategies and techniques are deployed to incorporate marginalized individuals into mobility pathways that, while seemingly democratizing, function according to extractive logics.
Recent authors (Altenried, 2021; Piasna et al., 2022; Van Doorn, 2023; Van Doorn et al., 2023) have begun to define the concept of ‘platform-based migrant digital labor,’ highlighting the close relationship between migrant workers and low-skilled platform-based employment, particularly in urban contexts. Within these forms of employment, temporal dynamics are shaped by bureaucratic constraints embedded in national regulatory frameworks, which, in turn, condition migrant labor mobility according to specific ‘temporal migration regime’ (Maury, 2022). Additionally, job precarity and stability fluctuate in relation to legal status, entry and residency requirements, political dynamics, age, and physical abilities (Chacko & Price, 2021). A central aspect of this relationship between migration and platform labor is the capitalist regulation of migrant labor mobility. In this context, digital platforms function as infrastructures that absorb migrant labor through stratification and racialization mechanisms, relegating these workers to the lower and least remunerated segments of the labor market (Orth, 2024; Van Doorn & Vijay, 2021).
Against this backdrop, platform labor represents one of the few immediate employment opportunities for many migrants, regardless of their level of social integration or access to support networks (Van Doorn & Vijay, 2021). It serves as a crucial resource, particularly for individuals in extreme vulnerability, those with precarious legal status, limited professional experience, or an urgent need for income (Saucedo, 2018; Van Doorn et al., 2023). As previously noted, the ‘appeal’ of platform-based work stems from its formal flexibility, low linguistic and bureaucratic barriers, and relatively swift selection processes compared to other sectors.
1 INTRODUCTION: MIGRANT LABOUR IN THE PLATFORM
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