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Reproducing Global Inequalities in the Online Labour Market: Valuing Capital in the Design Field

Author

Listed:
  • Pelin Demirel

    (Imperial College London, UK)

  • Ekaterina Nemkova

    (IESEG School of Management, France)

  • Rebecca Taylor

    (University of Southampton, UK)

Abstract

Millions of freelancers work on digital platforms in the online labour market (OLM). The OLM’s capacity to both undermine and reproduce labour inequalities is a theme in contemporary platform economy debates. What is less well understood is how processes of social (re)production take place in practice for diverse freelancers on global platforms. Drawing on a study of freelance designers, we use Bourdieu’s notions of capital and field to explore the specific ‘rules of the game’ and the symbolic valuing of skills and identities that secure legitimacy and advantage in the OLM. We contribute to contemporary debates by illuminating the power of Global North actors to shape freelancer positions and hierarchies in the online design field. The ‘cost advantages’ of Global South workers are counterbalanced by the symbolic legitimising of specific cultural and social practices (specifically in relation to language) and the devaluing of others.

Suggested Citation

  • Pelin Demirel & Ekaterina Nemkova & Rebecca Taylor, 2021. "Reproducing Global Inequalities in the Online Labour Market: Valuing Capital in the Design Field," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 35(5), pages 914-930, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:woemps:v:35:y:2021:i:5:p:914-930
    DOI: 10.1177/0950017020942447
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sundararajan, Arun, 2016. "The Sharing Economy: The End of Employment and the Rise of Crowd-Based Capitalism," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262034573, December.
    2. Andrey Shevchuk & Denis Strebkov, 2018. "Safeguards against Opportunism in Freelance Contracting on the Internet," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 56(2), pages 342-369, June.
    3. Marcin Solarz, 2012. "North–South, Commemorating the First Brandt Report: searching for the contemporary spatial picture of the global rift," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 33(3), pages 559-569.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Silke Roth, 2025. "Career Boundary Crossing: The Importance of Networks for the Transition from the Military to Civilian Employment," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 30(3), pages 730-747, September.

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