Overcoming precarity in the gig economy through solidarity: a study of successful organising practices of subcontracted migrant workers

Lead Research Organisation: University of Nottingham
Department Name: Nottingham University Business School

Abstract

The International Labour Organization estimates that 164 million migrant workers in high-income countries are paid substantially less (e.g., -30% in Italy) than native workers and experience multiple forms of injustice beyond the workplace (ILO, 2018; 2020). The existing literature on migrant workers and union organising tend to overlook these workers' own resistive initiatives and focus instead on mainstream trade unions' attempts to organise them (e.g., Kelly, 1998; McAlevey, 2016). By contrast, my PhD Thesis showed that subcontracted migrant workers could organise effectively despite being confined to precarious, insecure jobs within the gig-economy (e.g., warehousing and parcel delivery). Migrant workers can limit their precarity and obtain significant victories that include material and subjective gains by organizing within independent (Pero', 2019) labour and community organisations. By grounding the analysis in migrant workers' views and experiences, my PhD provides innovative and detail-rich insights that enhance the understanding of how migrant workers - who are often considered unorganisable - can develop effective informal resistive initiatives, solidarity practices and obtain material concession and more dignified treatment at work, particularly in the gig economy.
This Fellowship will allow me to rework and transfer my evidence-based research to significantly wider audiences interested in Industrial Relations and Sociology of Work, Social Movements, Migration and Ethnic Studies and Sociology. It will contribute to practice of labour, civic and community organisations as well as policymakers concerned with social inequalities by analytically describing concrete experiences that help them develop better support for precarious migrant workers. This Fellowship's aims have been carefully designed to allow me to become an international researcher and develop a transnational bottom-up approach to study migrant workers' collective initiatives:
1) to establish a track-record of high-quality publications through the production of two articles in leading scientific journals ('Human Relations' and 'Work, Employment and Society') and a monograph proposal for Cornell University Press, an internationally renowned North American publisher in the fields of Labour Studies and Sociology of Work.
2) to present findings to two international conferences (ILPC 2022; BUIRA 2022) to extend my existing international network, develop collaborations and disseminate my research;
3) to communicate my research findings to a broader audience by organising an online seminar with the Italian independent union with whom I conducted my PhD study (S.I. Cobas), producing, translating (English, Italian, Spanish, French, Arabic) and sharing a report on my findings with S.I. Cobas and other independent and international labour and community organisations (e.g. ILO, ADL Cobas; ILWU; Coordinamento Migranti); to develop a blog and two-online workshops for knowledge and practice exchange with policymakers (Labour Inspectorate and Immigration Observatory of Bologna, Volta Think-Tank, CGIL) and international labour, civic organisations (ILWU, Unite, IWGB, UVW, Migrants' Organise).
4) to conduct limited research (N=15 semi-structured interviews with S.I. Cobas, United Voices of the World and Independent Workers of Great Britain) on challenges and opportunities in negotiating with multinational employers to initiate transnational bottom-up research on migrant workers and independent unions' joint initiatives (article to be submitted to Work, Employment and Society, see objective 1);
5) to expand my skills in "Policy Impact", "Social Media for Engagement" and grant proposal development through training and support provided by the University of Nottingham and the Centre for Advanced Studies (CAS);
6) to submit a funding proposal to the ESRC Principal Grant Investigator to conduct comparative research on precarious migrant workers' mobilisations in Europe
 
Description The most significant achievement from the award is that I successfully secured a permanent position as Lecturer in Work and Employment at the University of Sheffield one month before ending my one-year ESRC Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship. This aligns with the award's overarching aim to transition from the immediate post-doctoral stage of my career to becoming a successful independent researcher. In more detail, my two articles published in Human Relations (4*, CABS list) and Journal of Industrial Relations (3*, CABS list) show that significant new knowledge has been generated. Although I have identified a publisher, I have not yet submitted a monograph proposal. This is because I prioritised the major objective of this fellowship (preparing for job interviews takes time!) and the production of high-quality peer-reviewed articles. I have three further publications in the pipeline. One of these articles investigates the social and cultural processes of worker resistance. It received 'revise and resubmit' from the high-quality journal Work, Employment and Society, 4* CABS list in August 2023. One additional article investigates the economic processes that sustain informality in the British fashion industry - to be submitted to Progress in Human Geography, 3* CABS list. Another research output near submission is about the effective organising practices of independent trade unions in Italy and the UK - to be submitted to Human Relations. Specifically, my mentor and I agreed that conducting data collection was not a priority: I had enough data to write one high-quality article on this theme promptly. After discussing the pros and cons of writing research on transnational mobilisations in Italy and the UK, my mentor and I agreed that it would have been much more cost-effective to develop a comparative article on how these labour organisations are successful. Accordingly, funding secured for data collection was used to encourage knowledge exchange and to network with migrant workers and labour organisations. In practice, this implied presenting and discussing research findings in person (one event in Milan, along with several one-to-one meetings in Milan and Bologna). Here, I also had the opportunity to meet other potential participants and identify future research themes (e.g., transnational organising, workers' conditions in Amazon) of interest to them. These themes are currently being developed for funding proposals. The internal reviewers at the University of Nottingham successfully accepted my Expression of Interest for the ESRC New Investigator grant. As such, I was invited to develop a full proposal, which has been drafted; comments from advisors and my mentor have been received. However, as I have transitioned to the University of Sheffield, I will now need to get approval and feedback from this institution. Particularly noteworthy are also the new research network and collaborations favoured by this award. For instance, I have joined the steering committee of the International Labour and Logistics Network (Centre for Decent Work, University of Sheffield) and the Editorial Advisory Board of the international peer-reviewed journal Work in the Global Economy (Bristol University Press). Also, I've conducted research visits at the University of California Riverside's Inland Empire Labor and Community Research Center and the University of California Berkeley Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE).
Exploitation Route Research outputs can be further taken forward by scholars interested in multiple disciplines, such as Industrial Relations and Sociology of Work, Social Movements, Migration and Ethnic Studies and Sociology. Specifically, these research outputs directly contributed to current significant global debates on effective labour organising (e.g., Kelly, 1998, 2018; Holgate, 2021; Fox-Hodess, 2022), actor-centred research on worker mobilisations (e.g., Alberti and Però, 2018; Atzeni, 2021), and studies on worker informal and formal resistance (e.g., Scott, 1990; Anwar and Graham, 2020). For instance, in 2024, Professor Gabriella Alberti and Dr Maurizio Atzeni have invited me to participate as speaker and panellist in two international events. Also, in terms of practical relevance, these outputs can contribute to the work of a variety of stakeholders concerned with social inequalities. For instance, the findings outlined in the article published for Human Relations can inform the pursuit of social justice led by civic, labour and community organisations facing increasing societal diversity beyond the Italian context. This can be achieved via labour and community-oriented workshops and dedicated training activities. In addition, the results of these knowledge exchange and training activities can be translated into briefs and guidelines for policymakers, which can ultimately develop potential relevant legislative initiatives to protect the rights of vulnerable people, like outsourced and low-paid migrant workers.
Sectors Communities and Social Services/Policy

Education

Government

Democracy and Justice
 
Description Although this one-year ESRC Fellowship ended in August 2022 (one month earlier), it has already had a significant societal and cultural impact within society and academia. At the societal level, this award has allowed the precarious migrant workers involved in this research to gain recognition and visibility within their communities and internationally. Specifically, after attending all training identified, a short report on the main research findings of my PhD thesis was written. This report was translated into five different languages and uploaded on an ad hoc blog, which allowed wide dissemination among migrant workers, labour organisers (e.g., S.I.Cobas, ADL Cobas) and academics, also through the use of social media platforms. These activities have helped to raise awareness of precarious migrant workers' harsh conditions. For instance, this led to over 1000 people, including international academics, practitioners, and journalists, signing a petition supporting S.I.Cobas union members facing institutional injustice in July 2022. Additionally, S.I.Cobas and its members have gained access to transnational solidarity networks and events (e.g., ILLRN: Black Friday International Debrief) involving international NGOs, campaigns, labour organisations and scholars (e.g., 'Progressive International', 'MakeAmazonPay', the American' International Longshore and Warehouse Union', 'International Labour and Logistics Network'). Finally, other trade unions involving a highly diverse workforce (e.g., University and College Union) have invited me to present my paper on the practices that help to overcome linguistic diversity within labour organisations as part of their organising initiatives; this initial engagement and knowledge transfer interaction might lead to further impact in the near future. At the academic level, my research outputs and conference presentations are contributing to shaping existing and relevant theoretical debates on migrant workers' mobilisations in the Sociology of Work and Industrial Relations. Examples of this impact are as follows. First, my articles published in Human Relations (4*, CABS list) and Journal of Industrial Relations (3*, CABS list) have already been cited in high-quality peer-reviewed journals (e.g., Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, 4* CABS list; Work, Employment and Society, 4*, CABS list). Second, I have been invited to present my work to prestigious academic seminars, for instance, those run by the University of Sheffield, the University of Leeds and the University of California, Berkeley: the Early Career Researchers' event 'Precarity, Race and Resistance in the Global Logistics Industry' set out by the International Labour and Logistics Network/Centre for Decent Work; the seminar 'The Improvised Language of Solidarity in Migrant Workers' Organizing' organised by CERIC (Centre for Employment Relations, Innovation and Change); the special event organised by the Institute for Research on Labour and Employment (University of California) 'Welcoming Back Researchers from the Centre for Decent Work' respectively. Third, I have been invited by Professor Kirsty Newsome to join the Editorial Advisory Board of the international peer-reviewed journal Work in the Global Economy (Bristol University Press). Fourth, I have been invited to join the Steering Committee of the International Labour and Logistics Network (University of Sheffield, Centre for Decent Work). Finally, I have been asked to contribute to the French peer-reviewed journal Les Mondes du Travail, the second edition of the book 'Resistances Au Travail' and the Edward Elgar handbook on core Employment Relations theories and concepts.
First Year Of Impact 2022
Sector Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Government, Democracy and Justice
Impact Types Cultural

Societal
 
Description I collaborated with the International Labour and Logistics Research Network (Centre for Decent Work, University of Sheffield) 
Organisation University of Sheffield
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution My contributions to the International Labour and Logistics Network (ILLRN) - Centre for Decent Work (CDW) at the University of Sheffield are as follows: 1. I presented my article developed during my ESRC Fellowship at one of the ECR ILLRN/CDW events. Here, I exchanged knowledge from my research findings with various stakeholders, such as leading experts in the fields of Labour Studies and Sociology of Work (e.g., Jake Wilson, Professor of Sociology, California State University - Long Beach) and members of UK- and German-based labour organisations, such as Unite and LabourNet. 2. I set out ILLRN/CDW events (e.g., the ILLRN: Black Friday International Debrief, link below), using my knowledge of precarious labour in the logistics sector and access to my network of colleagues, precarious workers and independent labour organisations based in Europe. Here, partner organisations I worked/built rapport with during my PhD and ESRC Fellowship (e.g., SICobas/OZZ Inicjatywa Pracownicza) had the opportunity to exchange knowledge on labour organising with other trade unions based in Europe and the US (e.g., UNI Global Union), workers and trade unions based in the UK (e.g., GMB), Europe (e.g., Verdi) and the US (e.g., Warehouse Worker Resource Center). 3. I contributed to developing research projects (see update in 2023) Specifically, during my ESRC Fellowship, I was invited to present one of the articles developed during the awarded fellowship at the Early Career Researchers (ECRs) event led by the International Labour Logistics Network (Centre for Decent Work, University of Sheffield). Event details are in Awards. After that, I was appointed lecturer in Work and Employment at the University of Sheffield. I was also invited to join the Steering Committee of the ILLRN/CDW, where I collaborate monthly with international colleagues (see point 2).
Collaborator Contribution ILLRN/CDW members Professor Kirsty Newsome and Dr Katy Fox-Hodess, based at the University of Sheffield and experts in labour and logistics, contributed to the partnership as follows: 1. They set out an ECR event on logistics and invited me to present my work alongside other ECRs researching labour in logistics; 2. They introduced me to their global network of academics (e.g., Prof Wilson and Prof Reese, University of California, Riverside) and labour activists organising in the logistics sector (e.g., US dockworkers, GMB Amazon organisers in the UK); 3. They identified shared research collaborations with me that can benefit my career development. For instance, from them, I learned to develop a successful Ph.D. International Scholarship application (see entry in 2024). Moreover, I had the opportunity to develop future grant application ideas on logistics by bringing together our collective expertise on labour organising in this sector.
Impact Outcome: Event - ILLRN: Black Friday International Debrief: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/cdw/research/international-labour-and-logistics-research-network/illrn-black-friday-international-debrief
Start Year 2022
 
Description International PhD Scholarship with UC Riverside's Inland Empire Labour and Community Center (IELCC) 
Organisation University of California, Riverside
Country United States 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution My contributions included: 1. meeting with Sheffield-based Colleagues and Professor Ellen Reese, the director of the University of California, Riverside's Inland Empire Labour and Community Research Center (IELCC) and identifying key, feasible aspects of a potential joint PGR research project; 2. developing a successful draft of the research project and project advert: 'Labour Organising in the Logistics Industry: A Comparative Study of Warehouse Work in South Yorkshire and California's Inland Empire'. To do so, I drew on the research conducted during my PhD and Post-Docs on logistics warehouses, as well as the work I published during my ESRC Fellowship; 3. contributing to advertising the PhD scholarship in my network developed via attending international conferences during and after my ESRC Fellowship. The primary supervisor was Dr Katy Fox-Hodess. As an ECR lecturer, I was appointed the project's second supervisor. Both Dr Fox-Hodess and Professor Newsome, key members of the International Labour and Logistics Network (ILLRN) - Centre for Decent Work (CDW) at the University of Sheffield, attended the meeting mentioned above, reviewed the draft research proposal and advertised it widely. They have published in high-quality journals on labour organising in ports and the labour process in logistics warehouses, respectively. They have also supervised a PhD student studying logistics warehouses in Yorkshire (UK).
Collaborator Contribution UC Riverside's Inland Empire Labor and Community Research Center (IELCC) director and Professor Ellen Reese provided insights on the Californian context. She also advised on the research project (e.g., timeline and locations) and identified local academic and research support for the PhD student (e.g., stakeholders to be interviewed). Her expertise is in the sociology of labour: she has extensively published on the conditions of logistics warehouses in California. For example, 'Unsustainable Amazon, Warehousing, and the Politics of Exploitation' (University of California Press, 2023) and 'The Cost of Free-Shipping Amazon in the Global Economy' (Pluto Press, 2020). More info on IELCC here: https://ielcc.ucr.edu/
Impact Although we successfully secured internal funding for this scholarship, we did not recruit a suitable PhD student. Nonetheless, the collaboration with IELCC is still active (see next entry).
Start Year 2023
 
Description Research Visit at UC Riverside's Inland Empire Labour and Community Center (IELCC) 
Organisation University of California, Riverside
Country United States 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution This research visit lasted one working week. My main contributions included attending and contributing to meetings (with my Sheffield colleagues Dr Fox-Hodess and Professor Newsome) with: -academics at IELCC (e.g., Professor Reese; Dr Brookes), PhD students and research fellows; - academics at the Latin American Studies Research Center (e.g., Dr Alfonso Gonzales Toribio) - local trade union representatives and community organisers active in the logistics sector. These meetings aimed to develop other future joint potential PhD projects and the research grant proposal 'The Twin Transition (technology and green)-Implications for Work, Employment and Organising in Logistics', which, as a Centre for Decent Work team, we presented the following week at the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment.
Collaborator Contribution Professor Reese, director of UC Riverside's Inland Empire Labor and Community Research Center (IELCC), identified several researchers and other stakeholders (e.g., union organizers) with whom we could set up a one-to-one meeting before our arrival. After that, we met with the research team at UC Riverside's IELCC and the Latin American Studies Research Center. We also set up several meetings with local union organisers, research think-thank and community organisations to be involved in future grant applications.
Impact - The visit only occurred in January 2024, so it is hard to identify the long-term impact. However, we have already organised a seminar at the Centre for Decent Work with Professor Apostolidis (London School of Economics, Department of Government) as a follow-up to our meeting with Dr Alfonso Gonzales Toribio, Director of the Latin American Studies Research Center. - Shared the Sheffield research team's ongoing work with an international and expert audience; - Gained insights and valuable feedback on ongoing research outputs; - - Extended Network; - Advance ongoing collaborations (e.g., joint research grant application)
Start Year 2023
 
Description Research Visit at the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) University of California, Berkeley to build international collaborations 
Organisation University of California, Berkeley
Country United States 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution The research visit at IRLE lasted one working week. My contributions included: 1. setting one-to-one meetings with Dr Anibel Ferus-Comelo (Director of Community-Engaged Academic Initiatives) and Dr Jake Grumbach and Dr Caitlin Patler (both at the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE), University of California, Berkeley - Goldman School of Public Policy) to compare research on labour organising and migrant labour; 2. attending and contributing to collective initiatives set by the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE), University of California, Berkeley, ad hoc for the Centre for Decent Work research team (e.g., keynote lectures and networking events); 3. Presented my under review paper, 'Self-Organisation and Labour Mobilisation in the Logistics Sector: Lessons from migrant workers', as part of the event The Twin Transition (technology and green) - Implications for Work, Employment and Organising in Logistics', chaired by Professor Kirsty Newsome (University of Sheffield).
Collaborator Contribution Ken Jacob, co-chair of the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE), University of California, Berkeley, identified key researchers with whom we could set up a one-to-one meeting before our arrival. After that, the IRLE team invited us to participate in -IRLE theme-focussed meetings (e.g., low-wage and minimum wage policies, labour education, technology and labour) run by the IRLE leading researchers; - dinner for networking; - two ad-hoc events (keynote speakers and our collective project workshop) to present our research. Both events were attended by most of the overall research team. Other info can be found here: https://irle.berkeley.edu/event/special-event-welcoming-back-researchers-from-the-centre-for-decent-work/
Impact - Disseminated the Sheffield research team's ongoing work to an international and expert audience; - Gained insights and valuable feedback on ongoing research outputs; - Extended network; - Determined potential further collaborations (e.g., co-authored scholarly outputs, joint research grant applications)
Start Year 2024
 
Description Activity 1: Write, translate and share a short report on my PhD thesis for research participants and relevant labour organisations 
Form Of Engagement Activity A magazine, newsletter or online publication
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact I wrote a short report on my PhD thesis. I have translated it into English, Italian, Spanish, French and Arabic. All translations were shared via my personal social media, the University of Nottingham blogs and The Institute of Policy and Engagement Twitter account. The overall social media impact included over 2000 impressions and engagement. Also, over 600 copies of this report were printed and distributed to S.I.Cobas migrant workers, their families and allies. I have also emailed this report directly to S.I.Cobas migrant workers, activists, and members of other relevant labour organisations (e.g., ADL Cobas, ILWU). This report was shared via the S.I.Cobas members' newsletter, reaching more than 5000 members. Unfortunately, it took me four months to access the translation in Arabic for reasons beyond my responsibility (e.g., the University of Nottingham did not have a supplier available for translations in Arabic). The Institute of Policy and Engagement also needed 16 days to format these documents. Nevertheless, the report sparked questions and discussions, which led me to set out Activity 2.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://blogs.nottingham.ac.uk/migrantworkersorganising/2022/06/22/translations-of-my-report/
 
Description Activity 2: Event to share my research findings with members of S.I.Cobas (in-person, Milan) and other sympathetic organisations 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Regional
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact After sharing my report (activity 1) and suggesting organising an online seminar with research participants, the same participants invited me to present my study in person on the 11th of July, in Milan (Italy), at the S.I.Cobas assembly. This seminar counted over 100 people, including S.I.Cobas migrant workers and families, activists and members of ADL Cobas and other sympathetic regional grassroots organisations. Accordingly, informal but relevant conversations with research participants occurred from the 12th to the 15th of July. These conversations started from findings (see Activity 1) digitally shared with research participants on the 1st and 5th of July. This invitation represented a key occasion to disseminate, strengthen outreach, and promote one-to-one conversations on my research findings. One S.I.Cobas migrant worker commented on the event: 'it is important for me to be here. Thanks for making my family finally understand and value what I do'.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
 
Description Activity 3: One-to-one meetings to discuss my research findings with S.I.Cobas members (in-person, Bologna and Milan) 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Regional
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact After sharing my report (activity 1) and suggesting organising an online seminar with research participants, the same participants invited me to discuss my study in person on the 13th of July in Bologna (Italy). I have met with 20 S.I.Cobas members, allies and activists, who asked questions and provided useful, detailed feedback on my study. This invitation represented a key occasion to disseminate, strengthen outreach, and identify future research themes. Also, it led to making plans regarding future events involving organisations outside Italy (see activity 5)
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
 
Description Activity 4: Blog on precarious migrant workers' organising 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact I have set out a blog on precarious migrant workers' organising in order to facilitate knowledge exchange and networking among labour, community organisations, scholars and policymakers. However, the blog had not had as much impact as expected. After multiple email exchanges, the University of Nottingham has not allowed me to use the ESRC funding to pay for an independent WordPress blog, having already had agreements with WordPress in place. This resulted in setting out a WordPress blog via the University of Nottingham on my behalf only in May 2022. That is, I could use this blog for three months and over the ESRC fellowship period only. Since my contract ended, I have not had access to it. Nonetheless, the blog has facilitated sharing my report and relevant translations (see Activity 1 and relevant outcome) with the wider public.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://blogs.nottingham.ac.uk/migrantworkersorganising/
 
Description Activity 5: ILLRN: Black Friday International Debrief - online event 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact During Activity 3, research participants and labour organisations pointed to the significance of promoting knowledge exchange with labour organisations and policymakers beyond the Italian context. Accordingly, I set out the online event Black Friday Amazon Debrief event in collaboration with the International Logistics and Labour Network (ILLRN) when appointed lecturer at the University of Sheffield (Sept 2022) and a member of the ILLRN Steering Committee. Speakers in this event included international organisations such as UNI Global Union, Progressive International, GMB (UK) and OZZ Inicjatywa Pracownicza (Poland). This invitation represented a key occasion to disseminate, strengthen outreach, and identify future research themes. This event led to Activity 6.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/cdw/research/international-labour-and-logistics-research-network/illrn-b...
 
Description Activity 6: ILLRN: Italian Logistics: the past, the present and the future 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Labour organisers and scholars suggested an event on the current institutional injustice that workers and labour organisations face in the Italian logistics sector. This was due to S.I.Cobas organisers increasing interest in this topic after taking part in activity 5. Accordingly, I set out an additional online event in collaboration with the International Logistics and Labour Network (ILLRN). Speakers in this event included Dr Andrea Bottalico, Assistant Professor (fixed-term) in Economic Sociology and Labour Studies at the Department of Social Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II" and Dr Niccolò Cuppini, Lecturer at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland. Both scholars have extensively studied the Italian logistics sector. Therefore, this invitation represented a key occasion to disseminate and strengthen outreach.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/italian-logistics-the-past-present-and-the-future-tickets-55655828982...