Digitalization, flexibilization and job quality. An intersectional analysis

Abstract

This article examines the new productive dynamics and workspaces in post-industrial economies associated with the expansion of digitalization and the platform economy, and applies an intersectional approach, which not only includes gender, but also age or generation to analyze how the expansion of atypical work affects different dimensions of quality of work. The results show a worsening of job quality with home-based or virtual work in almost all dimensions, highlighting the negative effects on environment and quality of time. The interaction between self-employment and teleworking particularly penalizes career prospects and the social environment. Women and young people continue to be characterized by poor working conditions, although their effects are smaller than those related to digitalization.