“MercadoLibre's 'B-side'” in Argentina: Labour Exploitation Strategies in the Tech Giant's Logistics Services

Abstract

Digitalisation, automation, and globalisation of supply chains –coupled with increasingly flexible, customised, outsourced, and sustainable processes– have profoundly reconfigured the logistics sector. These shifts have precipitated significant changes in labour dynamics, regulatory frameworks, and industry competitiveness. Moreover, the ascent of e‐commerce giants such as Amazon, Alibaba, and, in Latin America, MercadoLibre, has further accelerated these developments. This article examines, through a case study, the strategies adopted by MercadoLibre Argentina in developing its logistics operations while assessing their implications for employment and working conditions. The findings indicate that these processes are underpinned by the integration of diverse contractual modalities, which blend varying degrees of contractual and organisational dependency, ultimately resulting in the recruitment of a vast, low‐skilled workforce exposed to intensifying workloads and heightened precarisation.