Theories and Praxis of Digital Labour: The Fault Lines in Digital Capitalism

The work of this group has two goals: First, we revisit major theoretical breakthroughs from the past four decades related to digital capitalism, the (re)composition of the working class, the knowledge and creative economy, and the history of automation. We aim to identify persistent structural forces of capitalism that continue to shape the digital economy and labor struggles, and to explore new analytical perspectives that may have received less attention in recent scholarly enthusiasm for studying platform-based labour (e.g., delivery services). Secondly, we connect theories with the praxis of digital labor by engaging with non-academic community members, such as worker-led collectives and artists. Through community engagement, we hope to identify viable ways for our research to make meaningful contributions to these communities.

Leads

Faculty Members, University of Toronto

  • Julie Yujie Chen, UTM ICCIT
  • Priyank Chandra, Faculty of Information
  • Nicole Cohen, UTM ICCIT
  • Alessandro Delfanti, UTM ICCIT
  • Syed Ishtiaque Ahmed, Computer Science
  • Nusrat Jahan Mim, Architecture
  • David Nieborg, UTSC Arts, Culture & Media

Faculty Members Outside University of Toronto

  • Ergin Bulut, Media Communications & Cultural Studies, Goldsmiths, University of London
  • Hannah Johnston, Human Resources, York Unmiversity
  • Tanner Mirrlees, Communications & Digital Media Studies, Ontario Tech University

Postdoctoral Researcher

  • Kim Fernandes, Information

Independent Researcher

  • Maria Daniela Carneiro Gouveia De Melo

Graduate Students, University of Toronto

  • Maya Campo, Geography
  • Hiu Fung Chung, Information
  • Aditi Jain,
  • Kaushar Mahetaji, Information
  • Kevin Park, Sociology
  • Ashique Ali Thuppilikkat, Information
  • Lee Youngrong, Sociology
  • Yizhou Zhang, Drama, Theatre & Performance Studies

Graduate Students, Outside University of Toronto

  • Jaehoon Bae, Sociology, U. of Pittsburgh
  • Fabiana Benedito,  Communication & Contemporary Culture, Federal U. of Bahia, Brazil
  • Victoria Fleming, Communications & Culture, York U.
  • Laxana Paskaran, Gender, Feminist & Womens Studies, York U.
  • Farhan Latif, Sustainability Management, U. of Waterloo
  • Leopoldo Pedro Neto, Journalism, Federal U. of St. Catarina
  • Daniel Nielsen, Charles U., Czech Republic
  • Daniel Schneiß, Weizenbaum Institute

Undergraduate Students, University of Toronto

  • Joao Pedro De Souza Domingues, Economics
  • Emma Hwang, Geography /Sociology
  • Shafeen Rahman, Philosophy