Fighting the Algorithm: The Rise of Activism in the Face of Platform Inequality

A long tradition of labour geography, industrial relations, sociology, and organisational research has examined worker activism, documenting how shared experiences, collective identities, and a sense of solidarity can spur workers to engage in collective action in response to grievances. However, work in the on-demand economy challenges traditional pathways to activism. To shed light on how workers mobilise in a distributed, algorithmically managed environment, this chapter draws on a qualitative case study of workers’ involvement in the #DeclineNow movement on the on-demand food delivery platform DoorDash. Building upon prior work, the chapter defines algo-activism as a distinct form of dispersed action in which workers collectively draw upon their shared experiences with an algorithmic manager to identify and implement specific actions to redress their grievances. Through our case study, this chapter documents three algo-activism practices such that a shared understandings about the algorithm evolves, leading to the creation of an algorithmic imaginary that can reckon with the power of the algorithmic management system.