Dear all,
In February I shared with you our preliminary study estimating the number of persons micro-working in France, based on the first results of our research projet DiPLab.
Today, we published the complete results, featured in the report Micro-work in France. Behind Automation, New Forms of Precarious Labour? (Le Micro-Travail en France. Derrière l’automatisation, de nouvelles précarités au travail ?, 73 pages, available in French here http://diplab.eu/, with an executive summary in English).
Micro-work is accessible in France through at least 23 digital platforms which sport 15,000 'very active' workers and more than 250,000 'casual' ones. While not all of them micro-work every day, they constitute a large reservoir from which the industry can draw according to its needs. Their activity consists in highly fragmented online or mobile-based micro-tasks, generally paid by the piece. Most often, these tasks require low qualification and are equally poorly paid (sometimes just a few cents.
The socio-demographic profile of micro-workers in France
In February I shared with you our preliminary study estimating the number of persons micro-working in France, based on the first results of our research projet DiPLab.
Today, we published the complete results, featured in the report Micro-work in France. Behind Automation, New Forms of Precarious Labour? (Le Micro-Travail en France. Derrière l’automatisation, de nouvelles précarités au travail ?, 73 pages, available in French here http://diplab.eu/, with an executive summary in English).
Micro-work is accessible in France through at least 23 digital platforms which sport 15,000 'very active' workers and more than 250,000 'casual' ones. While not all of them micro-work every day, they constitute a large reservoir from which the industry can draw according to its needs. Their activity consists in highly fragmented online or mobile-based micro-tasks, generally paid by the piece. Most often, these tasks require low qualification and are equally poorly paid (sometimes just a few cents.
The socio-demographic profile of micro-workers in France
DiPLab researchers analyzed native web data, administered an online survey to nearly 1000 micro-workers, and conducted more than 90 interviews with workers, business and platform owners. According to the report:
➡️56% of the respondents identify as women;
➡️63% are 25-44 years old;
➡️43.5% of micro-workers hold at least a bachelor’s degree.
The geographical distribution of micro-work follows the distribution of the working population and national income. While micro-work is neither exclusively urban nor concentrated in Paris, it does not seem to constitute an opportunity to access the labor market and to increase the purchasing power for rural populations or residents in low-income regions.
The average monthly income of micro-work in France, is very unevenly distributed and bears on average 21€euros per month. This income is sometimes complementary to a main one. Yet it is very often a necessary source of financial support, especially for over 22% of the micro-workers who live below the poverty threshold.
➡️56% of the respondents identify as women;
➡️63% are 25-44 years old;
➡️43.5% of micro-workers hold at least a bachelor’s degree.
The geographical distribution of micro-work follows the distribution of the working population and national income. While micro-work is neither exclusively urban nor concentrated in Paris, it does not seem to constitute an opportunity to access the labor market and to increase the purchasing power for rural populations or residents in low-income regions.
The average monthly income of micro-work in France, is very unevenly distributed and bears on average 21€euros per month. This income is sometimes complementary to a main one. Yet it is very often a necessary source of financial support, especially for over 22% of the micro-workers who live below the poverty threshold.
Micro-work plays a key role in the development of French (and European) AI
Micro-work plays a major role in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) by French companies. By performing repetitive tasks, micro-workers annotate, label, enrich the data used for the deployment of algorithms, connected speakers, virtual assistants.
DiPLab respondent perform three main types of micro-tasks:
➡️AI preparation: micro-workers generate or annotate large training datasets used to calibrate machine learning solutions;
➡️AI verification: micro-workers oversee existing AI technologies, by correcting and checking their results;
➡️AI impersonation: micro-workers performe human tasks which are successively repackaged and branded as “artificial” intelligence.
Micro-work has a huge impact on present day's technology and economy, as it modifies both employment relationships and market structures. This is why it is paramount to assess the societal consequences of this new form of work. How can we regulate this new labor force and strengthen its social protection? Above all, given the predominant place of micro-work in the development and commercialization of artificial intelligence solutions, how can we ensure that micro-workers' contributions to technological innovation are recognized at their actual value?
Hope you find this interesting. Please feel free to share.
Micro-work has a huge impact on present day's technology and economy, as it modifies both employment relationships and market structures. This is why it is paramount to assess the societal consequences of this new form of work. How can we regulate this new labor force and strengthen its social protection? Above all, given the predominant place of micro-work in the development and commercialization of artificial intelligence solutions, how can we ensure that micro-workers' contributions to technological innovation are recognized at their actual value?
Hope you find this interesting. Please feel free to share.
Antonio
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Antonio A. Casilli
Associate Professor (HDR), Telecom ParisTech
Member, Interdisciplinary Institute for Innovation (i3 UMR 9217 CNRS)
Associate Member, LACI-IIAC (EHESS)
Faculty Fellow, Nexa Center for Internet & Society
Associate Professor (HDR), Telecom ParisTech
Member, Interdisciplinary Institute for Innovation (i3 UMR 9217 CNRS)
Associate Member, LACI-IIAC (EHESS)
Faculty Fellow, Nexa Center for Internet & Society