Various organizations facilitate access to work for refugees and host communities by providing
them with access to information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure and devices to
connect online, or by recognizing refugee identification documents for the purpose of setting up
accounts. For example, freelancing platform Upwork streamlines the account-opening process
for workers by accepting UNHCR refugee identification. Providing incentives to hire from refugee
communities also contributes to enhancing access to online work. These eorts create a more enabling
environment for digital labour platforms to open up to workers in forced displacement contexts.
Practices to reduce work-related risks and costs centre around ensuring timely and reliable
payments and compliance with existing laws or benchmark practices in the industry. Examples include
providing access to reliable payment methods using escrow and helping with tax compliance. Fintech
institutions like Payoneer and Wise play a role in providing access to financial services for refugees,
who are often excluded from the formal financial sector.
To improve working conditions, various practices are adopted, including setting minimum
compensation levels, providing a contract for each project and written policies on working conditions,
oering various types of insurance, mediating and resolving disputes, gathering worker feedback and
engaging in collective bargaining. For example, the Dükkan freelance working platform has instituted
an exploitation prevention system to address freelancer concerns regarding fair wages and low pay,
using the national minimum wage as a benchmark for task compensation. In Kenya, the local I-Workers
platform mobilizes online platform workers to organize and collectively negotiate working conditions.
5
Emerging practices to improve access to and working conditions on digital labour platforms for refugees and host communities
Executive summary
Online labour platforms have emerged as a new way of organizing work
that is rapidly expanding across the world. The platform economy has
the potential to connect refugees with the global economy, allowing
them to make a living and to upskill. While the digital gig economy brings
opportunities, it also raises challenges in terms of adequate access to labour
and social protections.
1
This paper documents emerging practices by digital labour platforms and other agents and intermediaries
facilitating access to platform work
2
that have the potential to improve access to work and working
conditions for refugees and host communities. However, this does not mean that the emerging practices
mentioned are all fully aligned with decent-work principles or international labour standards, nor that
they are all endorsed by the authors.
These emerging practices present a win-win scenario for both the workers from communities aected by
forced displacement and the platforms themselves. Platforms can attract socially conscious clients, tap
into a larger pool of talent and benefit from a diverse workforce. Workers from communities aected by
forced displacement can help platforms expand the range of services they oer and win new markets,
providing a more competitive marketplace and increasing its appeal to clients.
These practices are clustered in four categories: (i) facilitating access to work, (ii) reducing work-related
risks and costs, (iii) improving working conditions, and (iv) providing opportunities to build skills and
expertise.
1
The term “refugee” as used in this report includes refugees, beneficiaries of complementary forms of international protection and temporary protection and stay
arrangements.
2
Given the limited number of platforms that agreed to participate in this research, many of the emerging practices documented in this paper are implemented by other
agents or intermediaries that provide services or facilitate the induction of workers into online labour platforms, such as online job intermediation agencies, local NGOs,
social enterprises and electronic payment service providers.
