Gig Workers' Identity Construction in Pakistan's Platform Economy

Authors

• Zubair Ahmed Pirzada, Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur Mir's, Sindh, Pakistan.Follow
• Shoukat Ali Mahar, Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur, Sindh, Pakistan.Follow
• Muhammad Haneef Gambhir, Government Elementary College of Education (Men) Khairpur, Sindh, Pakistan.Follow

Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3491-7912

Abstract

The rapid expansion of Pakistan’s platform economy has introduced digitally mediated labor arrangements that fundamentally restructure occupational identities and the meanings workers attach to their work. Based on constructivist grounded theory, this study delves into the process of gig workers' self-negotiated and self-built occupational identities in the gig economy in the city of Karachi in Pakistan. Through in-depth interviews with 43 platform workers in Karachi (25 ride-sharing drivers and 18 food delivery riders), the analysis produced the Adaptive Identity Construction Framework, theorizing identity construction as a simultaneous process across temporal, algorithmic, and sociocultural dimensions. Four types of identity were formed: Anchored Entrepreneurs, Quantified Performers, Pragmatic Provisioners, and Transitional Seekers. A key point is the practice of "permanent temporariness" where workers recognize the situation but keep making a mental investment in how things might be otherwise as a way of feeling dignified. The study also shows that algorithmic ratings become internalized in workers' identities, creating a quantified identity of work in the context of platform capitalism. The findings extend work identity theory to Global South platform economy contexts, illuminating how global digital labor platforms intersect with local norms of honor (izzat), educational credential inflation, and class hierarchies to produce context-specific identity construction dynamics.

Keywords

Platform Economy, Gig Workers, Work Identity, Algorithmic Management, Grounded Theory

Disclosure of AI Use

1

Clarification of Disclosure of AI Use

Generated Figure 1 through ChatGPT Imagine.

DOI

10.54784/1990-6587.1827

Journal of Economic Literature Subject Codes

J81, O33, J24, J40, L86, O15, Z13, M54

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Pirzada, Z. A., Mahar, S. A., & Gambhir, M. (2026). Gig Workers' Identity Construction in Pakistan's Platform Economy. Business Review, 21(2), 22-44. Retrieved from 10.54784/1990-6587.1827