Work Precarity and Gig Literacies in Online Freelancing

TLDR

The gig economy attracts workers with promises of flexibility and autonomy, yet independent work also brings precarity, and digital platforms both mitigate and impose new constraints. Through 20 freelancer interviews, 19 client interviews, and an in‑depth walkthrough of Upwork, the study identifies emerging gig literacies that shape online freelancing. Gig workers adapt their skills and strategies to creatively leverage platform resources while negotiating or working around its imposed structures and control mechanisms.

Abstract

Many workers have been drawn to the gig economy by the promise of flexible, autonomous work, but scholars have highlighted how independent working arrangements also come with the drawbacks of precarity. Digital platforms appear to provide an alternative to certain aspects of precarity by helping workers find work consistently and securely. However, these platforms also introduce their own demands and constraints. Drawing on 20 interviews with online freelancers, 19 interviews with corresponding clients and a first-hand walkthrough of the Upwork platform, we identify critical literacies (what we call gig literacies), which are emerging around online freelancing. We find that gig workers must adapt their skills and work strategies in order to leverage platforms creatively and productively, and as a component of their ‘personal holding environment’. This involves not only using the resources provided by the platform effectively, but also negotiating or working around its imposed structures and control mechanisms.