Labour Market Regulation and the Economics of Precarious Knowledge Work

This study examines how evolving labour market regulations and economic drivers shape the proliferation of precarious employment in knowledge and communication sectors. Drawing on a critical cultural political economy framework, we map the deregulatory shifts eroding collectively negotiated rights and imposing “compulsory flexibility” that amplifies worker vulnerability. We extend Sum and Jessop’s analysis by integrating institutional economics and power-relations theory to capture the market imperatives underpinning precariatisation. Our refined conceptualisation highlights how economic structures, regulatory frameworks, and information-system dynamics converge to generate insecure work. Through a synthesis of Foucauldian analytics, phenomenological insights, and economic analysis, we illuminate the lived experiences of knowledge workers and the systemic forces driving precarity. We illustrate these dynamics with examples from academic and communicative sectors, demonstrating the universal relevance of precariatisation across knowledge economies. This tighter economic lens reveals actionable pathways for equitable labour regulation, offering policy recommendations to stabilise working conditions and rebalance power in knowledge-driven market