On October 10th, I presented my study titled "The Road to Techno-Serfdom: The Working Practices of Motorcycle Couriers in Ankara", derived from the working conditions section of my doctoral dissertation, at the 24th National Congress of Labour Economics and Industrial Relations held in Mersin between October 9 to 12, 2018.
In this paper, the working conditions of motorcycle couriers employed via digital labour platforms are analyzed within the conceptual framework of "techno-serfdom." Based on field research conducted with 17 motorcycle couriers across 7 different food and grocery delivery platforms operating in Ankara, the study examines the dependency relations engendered by the "tradesperson courier" model. The research findings indicate that platforms encourage couriers to establish sole proprietorships as a strategy to evade labour law obligations, thereby offloading market risks and all capital expenses onto the workers. It is demonstrated that although couriers appear legally "independent", they are rendered de facto dependent on platforms through opaque algorithmic management systems, real-time monitoring, and digital reputation mechanisms. The study emphasizes that this structure, wherein couriers possess the means of production yet are restricted to utilizing them solely within the parameters set by the platform, constitutes a form of modern serfdom; thus, the legal recognition of these workers as employees is argued to be a necessity.
The extended abstract proceedings book of the congress (ISBN: 978-605-4808-20-5) has been published in print. Please click on the book cover image below for information regarding the congress program.
1- Yücel, O. Ü. (2025). Teknoserfliğe giden yol: Ankara’da motokuryelerin çalışma pratikleri. In H. E. Temiz, E. Gülcan, F. Yeşilkaya, C. Eren, & Ö. Kahraman Ersöz (Eds.), 24. Çalışma Ekonomisi ve Endüstri İlişkileri Kongresi özet bildiri kitabı (pp. 234-239). TÜRK-İŞ.