Promotion of Self-employment: Manager Justifications for Online Labor Platform Operations

The emergence of online labor platforms (OLPs) has raised concerns about the treatment of platform workers and the legality of OLPs’ contractual relations and control. This study examines how managers (CEOs/founders) justify OLPs’ contractual relations and market control within the frames of critical platform work discussions and the Finnish labor market model. By using justification theory and market control classification as analytical tools, this qualitative study reveals that managers justify OLPs’ control and contractual relations by referring to critical discussions and features of Finnish labor market model. In justifications, managers either adopt the normative features of the model or criticize the societal neglect of self-employed workers. The model’s emphasis on full-time employment and legal questions around the platform economy seems to challenge the legitimacy of all OLP companies on some level. Despite OLPs’ operational differences, all managers justify OLPs with the idea of promoting self-employment within the Finnish labor market.