Algorithmic control and resistance in the gig economy: A case of Uber drivers in Dhaka

Abstract

This article explores how Uber drivers in Dhaka exercise agency to earn and sustain their livelihoods. Uber drivers not only experience extortion by Uber, but also face various challenges, such as precarious working conditions and algorithmic control of their activities. In most Global South countries, the regulatory practices are not in favour of Uber drivers either. Within this context, drawing on in-depth interviews with 27 Uber drivers and one focus group discussion with members of the Dhaka Ride-Sharing Drivers’ Union, this article makes an original contribution to the discussion of the algorithmic governance of labour and how gig workers in the Global South subvert algorithms utilising..