Labour, Incorporated: Dependent Contracting and Wageless Work in Africa’s “Responsible” Mines

Abstract

This article examines the growing corporate reliance on artisanal labour in the cobalt mines of the Democratic Republic of Congo. This shift from autonomous miners to corporate contractors, we suggest, holds historical significance and augurs a radical break with contemporary modes of extractive production. Under the banner of “responsible mining,” this form of dependent contracting fosters wageless relations in exchange for legal access to mining sites and corporate monopoly over artisanal production. By analysing the roots and mechanisms underlying these cooperative-corporate partnerships, we describe this emergent relation between labour and capital around three key features: the role of cooperatives as labour platforms, corporate control over local markets, and the deployment of discursive and technological regimes of responsibility and traceability.