A “catalogue” for clients: domestic labour platforms, informality and (in)visibility

Purpose Based on a study of digital platforms for domestic services in French-speaking Switzerland, this article seeks to analyse how the (in)visibility provided by platforms is perceived and made use of by employers and workers, with the aim of bringing to the fore the experiences of clients and comparing them with those of workers. Design/methodology/approach The article is based on a study that combines interviews with employers, workers and managers (25 in total), along with an analysis of platform interfaces and documentation. For the purpose of this article, I particularly draw on interviews with employers and workers. Findings My findings show that the (in)visibility created by platforms increases clients’ agency to the point of creating a “catalogue effect”, enabling employers to find in the same organised place a variety of profiles and options from which to choose when purchasing domestic services or defining working arrangements. This organised place gathers and organises information in a way that encourages comparisons and the expression of preferences and bias on the part of clients, and, while accentuating the commodification of domestic services, forces workers to make an effort to raise their individual visibility. Moreover, most of these platforms reproduce informal economic exchanges while attenuating the negative effects of informality for employers and shifting most of the consequences of informality onto workers. While informality does create a feeling of insecurity in some cases for both employers and workers, it additionally heightens vulnerability for the latter, which extends from the first meeting to the actual employment relationship. Originality/value The perspective of employers or clients using domestic-labour platforms is rarely investigated. By analysing how employers make use of and perceive domestic-labour platforms, and how these differ from workers’ experience, this article provides insights into the ways in which the different shades of (in)visibility are produced and maintained.