Publications on digital labour platforms

2021

  1. Employment Working Group

    Digital platforms and the world of work in G20 countries: Status and Policy Action

    25 November 2021

    Innovations in digital technologies and the ability to quickly and cheaply exchange large amounts of data and information between individuals, businesses and devices have laid the foundation for the rise of the digital economy. These transformations extend to the world of work, in particular through the fast growth of digital labour platforms. This report was prepared for the Employment Working Group under Italian G20 Presidency (2021)

  2. Publication

    Policy Brief - Digitalisation of TVET and skills development: Leveraging technology to support lifelong learning

    25 November 2021

    This policy brief concentrates on the digital transformation of skills systems and how technologies affect them. It is focused on how skills systems themselves become digitised, not how they respond to the demand for skills arising from digitalisation in the labour market.

  3. Publication

    Digitalization of national TVET and skills systems: Harnessing technology to support LLL: An enquiry and action framework

    04 November 2021

    This report describes and updates the picture of digital vocational education and training, providing an overview of the issues surrounding digitalisation across the key functional areas of skills systems.

  4. ILO Working paper 38

    Freelance platform work in the Russian Federation: 2009–2019

    26 July 2021

    This paper traces the development of freelance platform work in the Russian Federation based on unique data from four online surveys conducted over the period 2009 and 2019 via the leading platform for creative and knowledge-based work and analyses the working conditions and well-being of the workers.

  5. Publication

    Digital platforms and the world of work in G20 countries: Status and Policy Action

    15 July 2021

    Innovations in digital technologies and the ability to quickly and cheaply exchange large amounts of data and information between individuals, businesses and devices have laid the foundation for the rise of the digital economy. These transformations extend to the world of work, in particular through the fast growth of digital labour platforms. This report was prepared for the Employment Working Group under Italian G20 Presidency (2021)

  6. Training Policy Brief

    How to improve working conditions for gig workers in Thailand?

    23 June 2021

    While Thai platform workers enjoy flexibility and independence, they are deprived of security at work resulting from unclear employment status. Given insufficient benefits generated from platforms, gig workers can only be protected under social security schemes for informal workers which provide less coverage compared to formal employees. Those workers are also experiencing income security issues and lack bargaining power that leads to unfair job benefits. This policy brief suggests that the Thai government should consider including gig workers in formal employment to be eligible for benefits and social protection. Alternatively, the government should promote existing security schemes for gig workers and regulate platforms to provide the minimum standard of working conditions. Furthermore, collective bargaining should be encouraged to enable more negotiation between platforms and platform workers.

  7. Publication

    Employment Situation in Latin America and the Caribbean (Number 24): Decent work for platform workers in Latin America

    14 June 2021

    This edition of the Employment Situation in Latin America and the Caribbean report, jointly prepared twice-yearly by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) analyses the labour market trends in Latin America and the Caribbean amid the COVID-19 health crisis.

  8. Publication

    Digitally empowering young people in refugee and host communities What is possible? - A mapping study in Kenya

    02 June 2021

    The mapping study conducted by the ILO aims to inform practitioners in the field, including the programme staff and development partners, in the design and implementation of activities. The study seeks to identify good practices, capture lessons learned, and take note of potential areas of innovation by employers, training and young people themselves with a view to enhancing decent work in the digital economy in Kenya.

  9. ILO Working paper 32

    Digital Work in Eastern Europe: Overview of Trends, Outcomes, and Policy Responses

    25 May 2021

    This paper presents the emergence and growth of digital labour markets in Eastern Europe over the period 1999-2019. It presents the profiles of digital workers, their working conditions and discusses how these are shaped by the business models of digital labour platforms.

  10. Publication

    Digital refugee livelihoods and decent work - Towards inclusion in a fairer digital economy [Full report]

    29 April 2021

    The digitization of the world of work is fundamentally transforming how refugees can make a livelihood and obtain employment. A rapidly expanding global digital economy harbours countless new opportunities but it also poses a range of challenges and risks. A new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) now explores the growing role of digital economies for refugees, including case studies from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.