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Emotional Labour and the Autonomy of Dependent Self-Employed Workers: The Limitations of Digital Managerial Control in the Home Credit Sector

Lookup NU author(s): Professor Abigail Marks

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

Abstract

© The Author(s) 2021.Changes to the labour process in the home credit sector have exposed the industry’s agency workforce to increased levels of digital managerial control through the introduction of lending applications and algorithmic decision-making techniques. This article highlights the heterogeneous nature of the impact of digitalisation on the labour process and worker autonomy – specifically, in terms of workers’ engagement in unquantified emotional labour. By considering the limitations of digital control in relation to qualitative elements of the labour process, it becomes evident that emotional labour has the scope to be a source of autonomy for dependent self-employed workers when set against a backdrop of heightened digital control. This article therefore contributes to ongoing labour process debates surrounding digitalisation, quantified workers and digital managerial control.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Terry E, Marks A, Dakessian A, Christopoulos D

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Work, Employment and Society

Year: 2022

Volume: 36

Issue: 4

Pages: 665-682

Print publication date: 01/08/2022

Online publication date: 17/01/2021

Acceptance date: 02/04/2018

Date deposited: 02/09/2022

ISSN (print): 0950-0170

ISSN (electronic): 1469-8722

Publisher: SAGE Publications Ltd

URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017020979504

DOI: 10.1177/0950017020979504

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