Digitale Arbeitswelt – Chancen und Herausforderungen für Beschäftigte und Arbeitsmarkt
Der digitale Wandel der Arbeitswelt gilt als eine der großen Herausforderungen für Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Wie arbeiten wir in Zukunft? Welche Auswirkungen hat die Digitalisierung und die Nutzung Künstlicher Intelligenz auf Beschäftigung und Arbeitsmarkt? Welche Qualifikationen werden künftig benötigt? Wie verändern sich Tätigkeiten und Berufe? Welche arbeits- und sozialrechtlichen Konsequenzen ergeben sich daraus?
Dieses Themendossier dokumentiert Forschungsergebnisse zum Thema in den verschiedenen Wirtschaftsbereichen und Regionen.
Im Filter „Autorenschaft“ können Sie auf IAB-(Mit-)Autorenschaft eingrenzen.
- Gesamtbetrachtungen/Positionen
- Arbeitsformen, Arbeitszeit und Gesundheit
- Qualifikationsanforderungen und Berufe
- Arbeitsplatz- und Beschäftigungseffekte
- Wirtschaftsbereiche
- Arbeits- und sozialrechtliche Aspekte / digitale soziale Sicherung
- Deutschland
- Andere Länder/ internationaler Vergleich
- Besondere Personengruppen
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Literaturhinweis
Varieties of platform capitalism? Competition, regime types and the diversity of food delivery platforms across Europe and North America (2025)
Zitatform
Ametowobla, Dzifa & Stefan Kirchner (2025): Varieties of platform capitalism? Competition, regime types and the diversity of food delivery platforms across Europe and North America. In: Socio-economic review, Jg. 23, H. 2, S. 899-931. DOI:10.1093/ser/mwae079
Abstract
"This article challenges the idea of platform capitalism, that digital platforms implement a uniform model based on a self-employed labor force. Expanding on empirical evidence of a diversity of platform models, we theorize expectations about platform diversity from competition and comparative capitalism research. Using a unique cross-national dataset of leading food delivery platforms in 32 countries across North America and Europe, we compare platform models and competitive relations across national institutional regimes. Our analyses uncover a considerable diversity of platform models across Europe, in contrast to a clear uniformity in North America. We also find that the use of self-employment varies across and within large multinational corporations and is most prevalent in countries of the lightly regulated regime type. Our results call for an economic sociology perspective on the platform economy that integrates a general concept of platforms but allows for diversity stemming from competition and different national regimes." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Low Barriers, High Stakes: Formal and Informal Diffusion of AI in the Workplace (2025)
Arntz, Melanie ; Wischniewski, Sascha ; Meyer, Sophie-Charlotte; Baum, Myriam; Matthes, Britta ; Tisch, Anita ; Brüll, Eduard ; Hartwig, Matthias; Schlenker, Oliver; Dorau, Ralf;Zitatform
Arntz, Melanie, Myriam Baum, Eduard Brüll, Ralf Dorau, Matthias Hartwig, Britta Matthes, Sophie-Charlotte Meyer, Oliver Schlenker, Anita Tisch & Sascha Wischniewski (2025): Low Barriers, High Stakes: Formal and Informal Diffusion of AI in the Workplace. (Ifo working papers 422), München, 28 S.
Abstract
"Artificial intelligence (AI) is diffusing rapidly in the workplace, yet aggregate productivity gains remain limited. This paper examines the dual diffusion of AI – through both formal, employer-led and informal, employee-initiated adoption – as potential explanation. Using a representative survey of nearly 10,000 employees in Germany, we document a high extensive but low intensive margin of usage: while 64 percent use AI tools, only 20 percent use them frequently. This diffusion is strongly skill-biased and depends less on establishment and regional characteristics. While formality is associated with more frequent usage, training, AI-based supervision, and higher perceived productivity gains, it does not broaden access. These patterns suggest that widespread informal usage can coexist with limited productivity effects when complementary investments and organizational integration lag behind." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Won’t Get Fooled Again? Theorizing Discursive Constructions of Novelty in the ‘New’ World of Work (2025)
Aroles, Jeremy ; Leclercq-Vandelannoitte, Aurelie ; Hassard, John ; Granter, Edward ; Foster, William M.;Zitatform
Aroles, Jeremy, Aurelie Leclercq-Vandelannoitte, John Hassard, William M. Foster & Edward Granter (2025): Won’t Get Fooled Again? Theorizing Discursive Constructions of Novelty in the ‘New’ World of Work. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 39, H. 4, S. 882-903. DOI:10.1177/09500170241300948
Abstract
"This article outlines how notions of novelty define today’s work practices and debates what the discursive construction of work as ‘new’ means. On the one hand, we highlight a misplaced emphasis on change and novelty that can lead to unnecessary dichotomization in the characterization and discursive construction of work practices and organizational phenomena. On the other, we specify substantive continuities in a range of strategic, organizational and employment arrangements. As such, we contend that a critical evaluation of key characteristics of contemporary work reveals that they are often not unique. Instead, these characteristics reflect the extending, rebranding or reshaping of measures and processes fashioned in earlier forms of value production. Ultimately, we theorize how the promotion of the ‘new’ world of work reflects structures and practices somehow altered in appearance, yet still analogous in substance, to those found in the traditional employment and production fabric of organizations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Fehlzeiten-Report 2025: KI und Gesundheit - Möglichkeiten nutzen, Risiken bewältigen, Orientierung geben (2025)
Zitatform
Badura, Bernhard, Antje Ducki, Markus Meyer, Johanna Baumgardt & Helmut Schröder (Hrsg.) (2025): Fehlzeiten-Report 2025. KI und Gesundheit - Möglichkeiten nutzen, Risiken bewältigen, Orientierung geben. (Fehlzeiten-Report 27), Berlin: Springer, 735 S.
Abstract
"Der jährlich erscheinende Fehlzeiten-Report informiert umfassend über die Entwicklung des Krankenstandes von Beschäftigten in Deutschland. Neben detaillierten Sekundäranalysen von Versichertendaten werden empirische Studienergebnisse, zeitgemäße methodische Herangehensweisen und Leuchtturmprojekte der Betrieblichen Gesundheitsförderung vorgestellt. Vor dem Hintergrund aktueller technischer Entwicklungen beleuchtet der Fehlzeiten-Report 2025 schwerpunktmäßig Chancen und Herausforderungen des Einsatzes von Künstlicher Intelligenz (KI) in der Arbeitswelt. Er bietet einen orientierenden Überblick zu den Auswirkungen des Einsatzes von KI auf die betriebliche Gesundheitsförderung, Arbeitsumgebungen, Führung und Beschäftigte in Organisationen und erörtert aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven u.a die folgenden Fragen: - Wie kann KI so zum Einsatz gebracht werden, dass die menschlichen Fähigkeiten erweitert und gleichzeitig die Gesundheit der Beschäftigten und die individuelle Privatsphäre geschützt werden? - Wie gelingt die Entwicklung von KI-Systemen, in denen Mensch und Maschine produktiv zusammenarbeiten? - Welche wissenschaftlich fundierten Lösungsansätze zum menschen- und gesundheitszentrierten Umgang mit KI gibt es im Arbeitsschutz und der betrieblichen Gesundheitsförderung? Darüber hinaus liefert der Fehlzeiten-Report 2025 in gewohnter Qualität Daten und Analysen zu Fehlzeiten von Beschäftigten in Deutschland: - Aktuelle Statistiken zum Krankenstand in allen Branchen - Vergleichende Analysen nach Berufsgruppen, Bundesländern und Städten - Die wichtigsten für Arbeitsunfähigkeit verantwortlichen Krankheitsarten - Detaillierte Auswertungen u.a. zu Arbeitsunfällen, Langzeitarbeitsunfähigkeit, Burnout und Kinderkrankengeld. Zudem gibt es vor dem Hintergrund der aktuellen Diskussion um hohe Fehlzeiten einen Beitrag zur Einführung von Karenztagen und möglichen Effekten einer Absenkung der Lohnersatzrate." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
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Literaturhinweis
Digital Nomads, the New Frontier of Work in the Digital Age: A Bibliometric Analysis (2025)
Zitatform
Başaran, Altan (2025): Digital Nomads, the New Frontier of Work in the Digital Age: A Bibliometric Analysis. In: Sustainability, Jg. 17, H. 5. DOI:10.3390/su17051906
Abstract
"Digital nomadism is more than just a tourism idea. It represents a new working paradigm in which digital trends are transforming relationships between employers, work, and employees. Our study focuses on digital nomadism and the platforms that enable remote work relationships, which are the result of digitalization. The present study seeks to identify the current research trends and to rationalize future research opportunities in regards to digital nomads. To this end, a bibliometric analysis of available literature from the Scopus and Web of Science databases between 2006 and 2024 will be conducted. The study uses RStudio version 2024.12.0 Build 467 and Biblioshiny as tools to perform the bibliometric analysis of the extracted data. The research findings indicate that the publication of articles demonstrated an annual growth rate of 26.31% between 2006 and 2024. The average number of citations per document is 11.19. The UK, Portugal, Spain, and the USA are the most prominent contributors to digital nomad literature. Even though the conceptual discussions of this phenomenon are carried out in different disciplines, bibliometric analysis is used in our study to observe the areas in which the subject attracts attention in the academic literature and to predict the trends for the future." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Displaced or depressed? Working in automatable jobs and mental health (2025)
Zitatform
Blasco, Sylvie, Julie Rochut & Benedicte Rouland (2025): Displaced or depressed? Working in automatable jobs and mental health. In: Industrial Relations, Jg. 64, H. 1, S. 40-76. DOI:10.1111/irel.12356
Abstract
"Automation may destroy jobs and change the labor demand structure, thereby potentially impacting workers' mental health. Implementing propensity score matching on French individual survey data, we find that working in an automatable job is associated with a 3 pp increase in the probability of suffering from mental disorders. Fear of automation through fear of job loss, expectation of a required change in skills, and fear of unwanted job mobility seem to be relevant channels to explain the findings." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Different status, same demands? The social policy preferences of platform workers in OECD countries (2025)
Zitatform
Chueri, Juliana & Marius R. Busemeyer (2025): Different status, same demands? The social policy preferences of platform workers in OECD countries. In: Competition and Change, S. 1-18. DOI:10.1177/10245294251318440
Abstract
"Platform work has introduced a new dimension of precarity in the labor market, as platform workers face high labor market risks and have limited access to social protection. The expansion of this employment status raises the question of whether platform workers have distinct social policy preferences from workers with similar socioeconomic backgrounds who are not employed in the platform economy. This paper empirically examines how and under what circumstances the social policy preferences of platform workers differ from those of other workers. We find that platform workers are more likely to demand more compensatory labor market policies than regular workers. Also, they are more likely to demand more social investment-type policies than regular and atypical workers who do not engage in the platform economy. We also find evidence for contextual effects: whereas welfare state generosity is associated with weaker demand from platform workers for compensatory labor market policies, it is associated with higher support for social investment. Our results suggest that the expansion of platform work will fuel demands for welfare expansion, specifically focusing on social investment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
How welfare states influence online platform work in Europe (2025)
Zitatform
Chueri, Juliana & Petter Törnberg (2025): How welfare states influence online platform work in Europe. In: Journal of European Social Policy, S. 1-17. DOI:10.1177/09589287251357463
Abstract
"Digital labor platforms are reshaping global labor markets by enabling the transnational contracting of service workers. While the dominant perspective emphasizes market forces, predicting that lower-wage countries will dominate the supply side, this view overlooks the institutional context in which platform labor emerges. This paper advances the argument that national welfare institutions are key to shaping participation in the platform economy. We provide the first large-scale cross-national comparative analysis of platform labor, combining micro-level data from one of the world’s largest remote work platforms with country-level indicators from 26 European countries. In line with market expectations, we find that lower-wage countries supply most low-skilled labor, while higher-wage countries show a more balanced distribution between low- and high-skilled workers. Crucially, however, our analysis reveals that greater welfare state generosity is associated with lower levels of platform participation, especially in low-skilled occupations. We argue that platform labor cannot be understood solely as a function of technological change or wage differentials. It is also an expression of structural constraints: where social protections are weak, people are more likely to turn to precarious forms of online work." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
The EU compromise machine and the politicisation of social policy: Lessons from the regulation of platform work (2025)
Zitatform
Crespy, Amandine, Bastian Kenn, Matteo Marenco & Slavina Spasova (2025): The EU compromise machine and the politicisation of social policy: Lessons from the regulation of platform work. In: Journal of European Social Policy, S. 1-16. DOI:10.1177/09589287251345912
Abstract
"Over the past few years, the legal status and the working conditions of platform workers have been among the most debated manifestations of the digital transformation of work. Tense negotiations on the EU platform work directive (from 2021 to 2024) epitomize long-standing conflicts in EU social policymaking, namely the opposition between capital and labor, on the one hand, and resistance to EU involvement or impact on Member States’ social arrangements, on the other. This paper provides an in-depth inquiry of the policy process by focussing specifically on the presumption of employment in platform work, which was first proposed as an EU-wide provision and eventually nationalized with its definition left to national arrangements. Drawing on this case and mobilizing the literature on positive integration entrepreneurship, and politicization, we shed light on the ‘drivers’ and ‘inhibitors’ of EU social regulation. On the one hand, we provide evidence that joint entrepreneurship of the European Parliament (EP) and the European Commission is a primary driver and argue for acknowledging the role of the EP as a key entrepreneur of ‘Social Europe’. On the other hand, divisions in the Council, underpinned by domestic politics, hinder ambitious social policy regulation at EU level in several respects. Furthermore, we tease out the role of politicization and theorize its ambivalent role as both a driver and inhibitor, depending on contingent party political orientations, contextual factors, but also the role played by Council presidencies, so far overlooked in the literature. We conclude that the drivers and inhibitors we identify, and the resulting dynamics of compromise, are relevant beyond the case of platform work. While stressing the crucial, yet ambivalent, role of politicization, our findings cast a shadow on what has recently been described as a great come back of ‘Social Europe’ with the European Pillar of Social Rights." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Kassensturz. Daten, Fakten und Erfahrungen aus der Arbeitswelt des Berliner Einzelhandels: Branchenbericht (2025)
Engel, Sonja;Zitatform
Engel, Sonja (2025): Kassensturz. Daten, Fakten und Erfahrungen aus der Arbeitswelt des Berliner Einzelhandels. Branchenbericht. Berlin, 45 S.
Abstract
"Dieser Branchenbericht nimmt die Beschäftigung und die Beschäftigten des Berliner Einzelhandels genauer in den Blick. Der Bericht soll Anregung sein für Gespräche – zwischen Kolleg:innen, Arbeitnehmenden, Betriebsräten und Arbeitgebenden, sowie Akteur:innen, die sich in verschiedenen Positionen und in unterschiedlichen (politischen) Institutionen mit dieser Branche befassen. Es werden Daten und Statistiken analysiert, Fakten zusammengetragen und Perspektiven verschiedener Akteur:innen der Branche dargestellt. Er bietet Informationen über die aktuelle Situation und gibt einen Überblick über die Entwicklungen und Trends der vergangenen Jahre, präsentiert Einblicke in die Arbeitsbedingungen der Beschäftigten und die Herausforderungen, mit denen die Branche zu kämpfen hat. Auch der Onlinehandel und die Digitalisierung der Arbeit sowie die Frage des Fachkräftemangels werden genauer betrachtet. Für einen Gastbeitrag konnten wir Sarah Kuhn und Dr. Holger Seibert vom Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB) Berlin-Brandenburg gewinnen, die einen Exkurs zum Thema der Ersetzbarkeit von Tätigkeiten im Einzelhandel durch digitale Technologien präsentieren. Diese Publikation beruht dabei auf der Auswertung verschiedener Quellen: Offizielle Statistiken und Analysen, die von der Bundesagentur für Arbeit und weiteren Institutionen erhoben und veröffentlicht werden, sind eben - so betrachtet worden wie Ergebnisse wissenschaftlicher Untersuchungen und Umfrageergebnisse und Einschätzungen der Sozialpartner. Die Vereinte Dienstleistungsgewerkschaft (ver.di) und die von ihr geleisteten Sonderauswertungen der Daten des DGB-Index für Gute Arbeit liefern wichtige Erkenntnisse für das Verständnis des Arbeitsalltags der Arbeitnehmenden. Der Handelsverband Deutschland (HDE) trägt mit seinen Befragungen und Datenaufbereitungen die Perspektive der Unternehmen und Betriebe bei. Darüber hinaus kommen weitere Akteur:innen zu Wort, mit denen Hintergrundgespräche und Interviews geführt wurden, oder die an den Veranstaltungen des Projekts Joboption Berlin – drei Sozialpartnerdialogen und einem Werkstattgespräch teilgenommen haben." (Textauszug, IAB-Doku)
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Literaturhinweis
Algorithmisches Management bei App-basierten Lieferdiensten: Fast die Hälfte der betroffenen Gig-Worker fühlt sich dadurch überwacht (2025)
Zitatform
Friedrich, Martin, Ines Helm, Julia Lang & Christoph Müller (2025): Algorithmisches Management bei App-basierten Lieferdiensten: Fast die Hälfte der betroffenen Gig-Worker fühlt sich dadurch überwacht. In: IAB-Forum H. 23.09.2025. DOI:10.48720/IAB.FOO.20250923.01
Abstract
"Arbeit auf digitalen Plattformen zeichnet sich durch den Einsatz von algorithmischem Management aus. Eine Befragung zeigt, wie Gig-Worker bei App-basierten Lieferdiensten diese Praxis wahrnehmen. Die überwiegende Mehrheit der Gig-Worker gibt an, dass ihre Lieferdienstplattform digitale Arbeitsmittel beispielsweise einsetzt, um ihnen Aufgaben automatisch zuzuweisen und ihren Standort zu verfolgen. Fast die Hälfte der Betroffenen fühlt sich dadurch überwacht." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
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Literaturhinweis
Lieferdienste in Deutschland: Solo-Selbstständigkeit hat zwischen 2018 und 2021 stark abgenommen (Serie "Beschäftigung in der Gig-Ökonomie") (2025)
Zitatform
Friedrich, Martin, Ines Helm, Julia Lang & Christoph Müller (2025): Lieferdienste in Deutschland: Solo-Selbstständigkeit hat zwischen 2018 und 2021 stark abgenommen (Serie "Beschäftigung in der Gig-Ökonomie"). In: IAB-Forum H. 04.06.2025, 2025-06-04. DOI:10.48720/IAB.FOO.20250604.01
Abstract
"Über Solo- und Scheinselbstständigkeit bei Online-Lieferdiensten wird in der Öffentlichkeit häufig mit Sorge um die soziale Absicherung der dort tätigen Plattformarbeiter*innen diskutiert. Während sich die Erwerbstätigkeit in der Lieferdienstbranche zwischen 2012 und 2021 verdoppelt hat, hat der Anteil der Solo-Selbstständigen deutlich abgenommen. Im Jahr 2021 waren mehr als 95 Prozent der Lieferdienstfahrer*innen abhängig beschäftigt." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
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Literaturhinweis
App-basierte Lieferdienste in Deutschland: Warum Menschen Gig-Work aufnehmen und meist schnell wieder beenden (Serie: „Beschäftigung in der Gig-Ökonomie“) (2025)
Zitatform
Friedrich, Martin, Ines Helm, Ramona Jost, Julia Lang & Christoph Müller (2025): App-basierte Lieferdienste in Deutschland: Warum Menschen Gig-Work aufnehmen und meist schnell wieder beenden (Serie: „Beschäftigung in der Gig-Ökonomie“). In: IAB-Forum H. 16.04.2025. DOI:10.48720/IAB.FOO.20250416.01
Abstract
"App-basierte Lieferdienste haben sich in den letzten Jahren rasant ausgebreitet. Das hat auch die öffentliche Diskussion um schlechte Arbeitsbedingungen der dort beschäftigten Gig-Worker angefacht. Allerdings gibt es bisher wenige gesicherte Erkenntnisse darüber, was Menschen zur Aufnahme von Gig-Jobs bewegt. Über die Gründe zur Beendigung dieser meist kurzen Jobs ist ebenfalls wenig bekannt. Das IAB bringt mit Ergebnissen einer neuen Befragung Licht in dieses Dunkel." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
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Literaturhinweis
Contextualizing inequalities in the gig economy: evidence from online cleaning platforms in five European cities (2025)
Zitatform
Giuliani, Giovanni Amerigo & Rebecca Paraciani (2025): Contextualizing inequalities in the gig economy: evidence from online cleaning platforms in five European cities. In: The international journal of sociology and social policy, S. 1-20. DOI:10.1108/ijssp-12-2024-0619
Abstract
"Purpose: This paper explores the impact of national contexts on the profile of workers in the gig economy, with a specific focus on online cleaning platforms. The study aims to understand how national contexts influence the gender and ethnic composition of workers on domestic cleaning platforms, examining the intersectional effects of gender and ethnicity in platform-based work. Design/methodology/approach: Focusing on the case of the Yoopies platform operating in five Western European cities – Berlin, Copenhagen, Paris, Rome and Stockholm – this exploratory research is based on an original dataset that combines platform-based data directly collected from Yoopies with national-level data provided by Eurostat. Hypotheses were tested using simple correlation analysis to assess cross-country differences. Findings: The study shows that national contexts play an important role in shaping the gender and ethnic composition of workers on online cleaning platforms. Specifically, it identifies how structural features of the offline labor market influence the gendering and racialization of these platforms, highlighting variations across countries. The research also finds evidence of intersectional effects, where gender and ethnicity intersect to shape the profile of platform workers. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the growing literature on domestic work in the digital platform economy by providing a comparative perspective on cross-country differences in the composition of the platform workforce. It highlights the importance of national offline labor market characteristics in contributing to shaping platform-mediated work and provides new insights into the intersectionality of gender, ethnicity, and work in the gig economy. The findings contribute to both platform economy research and labor market studies, offering implications for policy and future research on the dynamics of digital work." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Emerald Group) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Does the Technological Transformation of Firms Go Along With More Employee Control Over Working Time? Empirical Findings From an EU-Wide Combined Dataset (2025)
Zitatform
Greenan, Nathalie & Silvia Napolitano (2025): Does the Technological Transformation of Firms Go Along With More Employee Control Over Working Time? Empirical Findings From an EU-Wide Combined Dataset. In: Review of Political Economy, Jg. 37, H. 2, S. 500-522. DOI:10.1080/09538259.2024.2445096
Abstract
"We investigate the links between the technological transformation of firms and employee control over working time. We conduct EU-wide analysis at the meso-level by relating information from the European Company Survey 2019 (Eurofound and Cedefop) with the Labour Force Survey ad hoc module 2019 (Eurostat). This dataset allows analysing the technological transformation of firms as a relationship between three types of investments (in R&D, digital technologies and learning capacity of the organisation) that spur innovation outputs. We then study the consequences of the technological transformation on the spread of unfavourable working time arrangements, distinguishing between individual and organisation-oriented arrangements. Our model considers the direct effects of investments in Digital technologies adoption and use and Learning capacity of the organisation and the mediating role of firms' innovation strategies. Results indicate that the Learning capacity of the organisation is directly associated with more individual-oriented working time flexibility, but entails higher organisation-oriented working time flexibility. The effect of Digital technologies adoption and use depends instead on firms' innovation strategy: product innovation leads to more employee control over working time, while marketing innovation has the opposite outcome. Process and organisational innovations yield mixed consequences buffering employees from organisation-oriented working time flexibility in more time-constrained work environments." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Space and Inequality in Precarious Work: Thinking With and Beyond Platforms (2025)
Zitatform
Griesbach, Kathleen (2025): Space and Inequality in Precarious Work: Thinking With and Beyond Platforms. In: Sociology Compass, Jg. 19, H. 3. DOI:10.1111/soc4.70026
Abstract
"Platform-based gig work illustrates a broader erosion of the spatial boundaries of work. While geographers have long theorized space as an integral part of capitalist work processes and social life, sociological research has often treated space as a backdrop for work processes rather than an active process shaping the social world, contemporary work, inequality, and resistance. However, important work in urban and rural sociology emphasizes the central role place plays in social life and inequality. This review synthesizes insights on space, place, and inequality and identifies key spatial continuities between platform labor and other forms of precarious work. I find common throughlines across disciplines: the intertwining of space, place, and social relations and the relevance of space and place for understanding inequality. Next, I relate spatial theories of capitalist development to contemporary precarious work. Finally, I suggest 3 promising avenues for incorporating space into research on contemporary work and inequality today: analyzing how existing inequalities intersect with the spatial features of new and enduring work structures; examining how contemporary work processes are reshaping rural and urban geographies; and identifying the spatial practices of contemporary organizing and resistance." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Dependence and Precarity in the Gig Economy: A Longitudinal Analysis of Platform Work and Mental Distress (2025)
Zitatform
Guo, Ya, Sizhan Cui, Zhuofei Lu & Senhu Wang (2025): Dependence and Precarity in the Gig Economy: A Longitudinal Analysis of Platform Work and Mental Distress. In: The British journal of sociology. DOI:10.1111/1468-4446.70028
Abstract
"While there is a growing body of literature examining platform dependence and its implications for mental health, much of the research has focused on gig workers with small sample sizes. The lack of large-scale quantitative research, particularly using longitudinal representative data, limits a comprehensive understanding of the dynamic relationship between platform dependence and mental distress. This study uses nationally representative data from the UK and fixed effects models to explore the heterogeneity of gig work, specifically examining differences in mental distress between high-dependence workers (those solely engaged in gig work) and low-dependence workers (those also employed in other jobs). The findings reveal that high-dependence gig workers have greater mental distress compared to low-dependence and full-time workers, with their mental well-being similar to those with no paid work. Low-dependence gig workers have lower mental distress than those without paid work. Financial precarity and loneliness partly explain these differences, with the impact stronger for highly educated high-dependence workers and less educated low-dependence workers. These findings highlight the significance of recognizing the heterogeneity of gig work in addressing future well-being challenges in a post-pandemic economy, as well as broadening the scope of the latent deprivation model to encompass the unique dynamics of gig work." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Support and employment preferences in online platform work: A cluster analysis of German-speaking workers (2025)
Zitatform
Klaus, Dominik, Maddalena Lamura, Marcel Bilger & Barbara Haas (2025): Support and employment preferences in online platform work. A cluster analysis of German-speaking workers. In: International Journal of Social Welfare, Jg. 34, H. 1, S. e12659. DOI:10.1111/ijsw.12659
Abstract
"Online platform work is an emerging field of non-standard employment. Up to now, there has been little knowledge of the perspective of online platform workers on social protection and regulation. We provide quantitative data (n = 1727) on their needs for support and on their employment status preferences. Given the heterogeneity of German-speaking online platform workers, we have conducted a cluster analysis to group workers according to task length, hourly wage, working hours and experience on online platforms. Most of the respondents are solo-self-employed and hybrid workers. They prefer support instruments that improve their skills and income over those that aim to strengthen their rights. The majority of platform workers are in favour of working outside of platforms. The study also shows that despite the low dependence on platform income, the actual poverty risk is relatively high." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Inequality Regimes in Coworking Spaces: How New Forms of Organising (Re)produce Inequalities (2025)
Zitatform
Knappert, Lena, Boukje Cnossen & Renate Ortlieb (2025): Inequality Regimes in Coworking Spaces: How New Forms of Organising (Re)produce Inequalities. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 39, H. 1, S. 43-63. DOI:10.1177/09500170241237188
Abstract
"Coworking is a rapidly growing worldwide phenomenon. While the coworking movement emphasizes equality and emancipation, there is little known about the extent to which coworking spaces as new forms of organizing live up to this ideal. This study examines inequality in coworking spaces in the Netherlands, employing Acker’s framework of inequality regimes. The findings highlight coworking-specific components of inequality regimes, in particular stereotyped assumptions regarding ‘ideal members’ that establish the bases of inequality, practices that produce inequality (e.g. through the commodification of community) and practices that perpetuate inequality (e.g. the denial of inequality). The study provides an update of Acker’s framework in the context of coworking and speaks, more broadly, to the growing body of literature on (in)equality in emerging organizational contexts." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Automation in shared service centres: Implications for skills and autonomy (2025)
Zitatform
Kowalik, Zuzanna, Piotr Lewandowski, Tomasz Geodecki & Maciej Grodzicki (2025): Automation in shared service centres: Implications for skills and autonomy. In: The Economic and Labour Relations Review, S. 1-19. DOI:10.1017/elr.2025.10026
Abstract
"The offshoring-fueled growth of the Central and Eastern European business services sector gave rise to shared service centers (SSCs) – quasi-autonomous entities providing routine-intensive tasks for the central organization. The advent of technologies such as intelligent process automation, robotic process automation, and artificial intelligence jeopardises SSCs’ employment model, necessitating workers’ skills adaptation. The study challenges the deskilling hypothesis and reveals that automation in the Polish SSCs is conducive to upskilling and worker autonomy. Drawing on 31 in-depth interviews, we highlight the negotiated nature of automation processes shaped by interactions between headquarters, SSCs, and their workers. Workers actively participated in automation processes, eliminating the most mundane tasks. This resulted in upskilling, higher job satisfaction, and empowerment. Yet, this phenomenon heavily depends upon the fact that automation is triggered by labor shortages, which limit the expansion of SSCs. This situation encourages companies to leverage the specific expertise entrenched in their existing workforce. The study underscores the importance of fostering employee-driven automation and upskilling initiatives for overall job satisfaction and quality." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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- Gesamtbetrachtungen/Positionen
- Arbeitsformen, Arbeitszeit und Gesundheit
- Qualifikationsanforderungen und Berufe
- Arbeitsplatz- und Beschäftigungseffekte
- Wirtschaftsbereiche
- Arbeits- und sozialrechtliche Aspekte / digitale soziale Sicherung
- Deutschland
- Andere Länder/ internationaler Vergleich
- Besondere Personengruppen