Call for Papers - Multidisciplinary PhD Conference on Digital Labour Platforms

Digital art
Photo by Conny Schneider on Unsplash

Utrecht University is hosting a multidisciplinary PhD Conference on Digital Labour Platforms on 17 April 2024. We invite PhD students and other young scholars to submit their work on digital Labour Platforms before January 14. This conference aims to explore the multifaceted challenges and opportunities within the realm of Digital Labour Platforms. We wish to bring together various young scholars from their respective disciplines.

The Call for Papers is now open and we've curated three distinct streams:

  1. AI and Digital Labour Platforms
  2. Worker Participation and Governance
  3. Regulation of Digital Labour Platforms

Ever-growing gig economy

The conference features three keynote presentations followed by three thematic streams, each accommodating up to eight participants for research presentations, feedback, and dialogue. Senior scholars will assess final papers and lead discussions. Selected papers will have the chance to be part of a special issue in a multidisciplinary journal or an edited volume.

Photo by Paul Hanaoka on Unsplash.

There is a strong focus on building an academic and social network for the involved PhD students. In this conference, we focus on the challenges and opportunities arising from digital labour platforms within an ever-growing gig economy. An important element to this is the precarious position of workers within the platform economy, emphasising the need for robust protections. Also, we turn our attention to the crucial role played by artificial intelligence, algorithmic management, and data storage in shaping the governance and functioning of digital labour platforms. The ethical, legal, and societal implications of these technologies are essential for understanding the dynamics of digital labour platforms

Submission Details

Submit your abstract (max 500 words) by January 14th via this online form. Travel reimbursement is available for selected participants from outside the Netherlands. Notification of attendance will be sent before the first of February. The deadline for the final papers is March 14th. 

We prefer papers aligned with our streams, but if your submission explores a different yet relevant topic to digital labour pla8orms, it could be selected for a fourth stream.

Save the date

The Conference will be held on April 17,2024 from 10:00 - 21:00 (includes lunch and dinner) in Utrecht, Netherlands.

You can download the Call for Papers as a PDF 

Call for Papers Digital Labour Platforms (pdf)

This conference is made possible through the support of PlatWork-R, PhD Network Governing the Digital Society, and the Utrecht Centre for Regulation and Enforcement in Europe: RENFORCE