Abstract
This chapter tackles a number of debates surrounding the topic of virtual work, shedding light on the diverse discourses by focusing on three contradictory relationships characterizing virtual work: the compression of time and place vs. the global reach of virtual spaces; autonomy vs. control; and collaboration vs. competition. Developments in these three contradictory relationships are examined through two topics that represent traditional areas of analysis for the sociology of work: institutional embeddedness and labor markets and the question of how the complex division of labor and value capture in work in digital environments can be conceptually understood is addressed. The analysis shows how dis-embedded institutions and amorphous labor markets challenge the formulation of policy and regulation in light of the unbounded, poorly defined, and obfuscated character of virtual work.
Virtual work is very diverse and has many forms. This chapter leaves the exact designation of what virtual work is relatively open with one exception: forms of virtual labor exchange that are carried out locally such as for transport, accommodation, services, and so on, are excluded. All other forms, both paid and unpaid, are included, although the emphasis is largely on work on digital platforms.
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Meil, P. (2018). Spinning the Web: The Contradictions of Researching and Regulating Digital Work and Labour. In: Bilić , P., Primorac, J., Valtýsson, B. (eds) Technologies of Labour and the Politics of Contradiction. Dynamics of Virtual Work. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76279-1_15
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