Precarious Workers and Precarity through the Lens of Social Movement Studies

Abstract

This chapter discusses how precarious workers engage in contentious collective actions outside the realm of institutional politics. It draws on the scholarly work of social movement studies to address three relevant dimensions of social movements: collective identity, organizational patterns and protest repertoire. In so doing, the chapter uncovers the challenges that precarious workers’ movements and the related movement organizations must face when organizing collectively to engage in contentious politics. Additionally, the chapter presents some reflections on how the three above-mentioned dimensions become relevant when considering an emerging yet growing type of precarious worker: platform workers.