The invisible human in platform work - a qualitative study of algorithmic management

Work mediated through digital platforms involves a large amount of invisible work. We examine this work through a qualitative study from the workers' perspective on cleaning and food delivery platforms, in a predominantly Danish context. Our study shows that the invisible work consists of the following: The support workers employed at the platforms support the work; the platform workers undertake work with the algorithmic systems; the customers coordinate with the platform workers, and in the case of food delivery work, the restaurant workers coordinate with food delivery workers. Against this background, contrary to previous studies of crowdwork, we argue that even relatively visible platform workers involved in cleaning and food delivery deliver large amounts of invisible work. The so-called "algorithmic management" on the platforms is therefore based in these cases on human estimates and assessments, and we discuss the implications of this in a wider societal context.