Algorithmic Captives: Digital Control of Cross-border Gig Workers

Abstract

This paper investigates the unique patterns of exploitation suffered by gig workers who cross international borders and work under algorithmic supervision, coining the term “algorithmic captivity” to describe their situation. We explore the interplay between control-relational frameworks from the digital economy and the immigration status of workers within the context of increased precarity in the global labour market, utilising concepts from migration studies and the digital economy of labour. The study identifies a number of interrelated algorithmic control mechanisms—scene, spatial monitoring and tracking, automated decision-making, as well as strategic documentation verification and communication channel limitation—that function as control within a system and create complex vulnerabilities for migrants. These migrants encounter differential treatment based on nationality profiles in a multi-layered regulatory and jurisdictional terrain—hierarchical gaps of overlapping jurisdictions. The lack of clarity of algorithmic control intensifies these dilemmas, wherein workers are unable to contest decisions surpassing regulations that govern their work. This study illustrates how digital platforms reinforce instead of abolish prevailing nationalist and migration hierarchies by embedding discriminatory socio-political structures into purportedly impartial technological frameworks. We recommend the integration of algorithmic justice encompassing labour rights and migration governance alongside digitally oriented frameworks targeted toward addressing cross-border complexities of jurisdictional platform work.