"I have become a living Google Map”: Location-based Digital Labour Platforms and the Future of Work for Female Delivery Riders in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Location-based digital labour platforms are predominantly comprised of male workers, especially in the Global South. Contemporary literatures on platform works narrowly focus on technological aspects such as, algorithmic control on the workers and ostensive flexibility. However, the social mediation between platform technology and gender relations is largely neglected in research and theory. Consequently, the factors contributing to the limited participation of women in platform work, encompassing the challenges confronted by them and the resultant implications for their future opportunities, have largely been under explored. In understanding how location-based digital labour platforms are shaping the future of work for female delivery workers in Dhaka, Bangladesh, this research employs feminist approaches to the social shaping of technology, considering technology both as a source and consequence of gender relations. To comprehend how the female delivery workers articulate the use and significance of location-based digital labour platforms in their everyday lives, the research integrates their viewpoints and lived experiences through 20 qualitative interviews. Additionally, in assessing the socio-technical network and external environment's impact on the social shaping, it also incorporates perspectives from actors, representing development organisations, government, and platform companies. Preliminary findings suggest that digital labour platforms, serving as a source of gender relations, exhibit operational characteristics that makes it unfavourable for women to join and continue such work. As a consequence, location-based platform work is often not seen as a long-term career option by, and for, women. However, they have enhanced women’s mobility and served as a stepladder for them to reach their educational and business goals. This research-in-progress paper argues that ensuring gender sensitivity and inclusivity in shaping the future of work requires delivery platforms to be grounded in equity, with equality being insufficient.