Formalized, but still marginalized? Working Conditions and Perspectives for European Migrants in the Internet-based Domestic Cleaning Service Sector in Berlin
- Abstract
The thesis at hand examines the formalization of the domestic cleaning sector via Internet platforms. Using qualitative interviews with four cleaners working for platforms and one platform-manager the thesis research question how market-drive formalization via platforms can unfold. A first hypothesis states that market-driven formalization cannot offer considerably better working conditions than informal cleaning work due to the self-employed status of the cleaners and its implications. A second hypothesis states that working as cleaners for internet platforms can provide for an easy entrance into the general German labour market as the market entry barriers are very low. A content-analysis of the five interviews yields mixed results: platforms cannot offer considerably better working conditions than informality and even fail in some cases to diminish arbitrariness of the informal economy. Moreover, while platforms can be a viable in-between solution for a small group of migrants it doesn´t generally offer
The topic’s significance expresses itself in the sheer scale of the informal cleaning sector and the potential for regular work that could be achieved through its formalization. The thesis is built on previous theoretical and empirical work on formalization approaches and the domestic cleaning sector in Germany. Drawing from experiences made with “service pools”, a rights-based form of formalization of the domestic cleaning sector in Germany, the thesis develops several categories, which capture aspects of the formalization via platforms, such as the determination of working hours or the working relationship between cleaners and customers/platforms.
Using problem-centred interviews the thesis put the perspectives of cleaners and platforms into centre stage. From the interview statements, which were categorized and examined into a theoretically grounded categorization scheme, conclusions could be drawn as to certain aspects of platform-based formalization. Built on the interview material, the thesis finds that formalization via platforms falls short to adequately provide cleaners with the working conditions that regular employment could provide. Furthermore, while possibly being helpful for non-Germans seeking to enter the German labour market, platforms were also perceived to be exploitative towards their migrant labour force.