Digital Platforms and Informal Work: Analysis of Labor Lawsuits in the City of São Paulo Related to Uber

Abstract

This work aims to study the digital platforms and informal work. The discussion about the informal work is related to the precarious, insecure and unprotected work and its environmental factors as well as can be related to the emergence of digital platforms and technologies in the economy. The research problem was: how digital platforms and technologies increase informal work and judicial claims requesting work formalizations? The methodology was based on the analysis of labor complaints regarding work formalization (n=108) against Uber in Sao Paulo, the most populous city in Brazil and the city that Uber makes the most rides in the world. As a result, it is intended to discuss if and how labor complains promote the access of informal workers to the essential protections and benefits of labour law and social security in Brazil.

Keywords: Digital Platforms, Precarious Work, Informal Work, Uber