For more, please see the paper. dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/...

c) and collective action centered around regeneration & care for the city & collective life under capitalism.

We conceptualise “generative politics” as a commitment to sustaining collective life and care under precarious conditions–a form of political action that resists through regeneration.

With Kolkata's gig union, we identify a) “generative” attitude or orientation towards political action that focuses on creating material & immaterial resources; b) political action beyond protest politics that contributes to organic solidarity

Our study also diverges from tight and orthodox articulations of unions to show how their roles and capabilities can and often do extend beyond protests and strikes to also engage in the work of rebuilding the wider communities where they exist. Union do more than protest, protest, protest.

Alternative imaginations & designs of socio-technical infrastructures need not always be complex or technically or monetarily intensive. Rather, relatively lean technical infrastructure can be combined with innovative forms of social cooperation to regenerate essential infrastructures.

During COVID-19, when Uber/Ola's operations collapsed, Kolkata’s gig worker union launched emergency transport & taxi ambulances. We explore how they curated innovation and adaptations in tech-mediated networked organising, & its implications for tech design & worker organizing.

Thanks to @dipsitadhar.bsky.social for leading this camp.

We (Dipsita & @prch.bsky.social) thank Kolkata Ola-Uber App Cab Operator Union for their invaluable support & cooperation in facilitating our research.

Yes, union makes us strong ✊🏾

Traditional trade unions aren’t obsolete—they’ve evolved and continue to play vital roles. Tech partially helps in this process. Their resources and strategies remain crucial in supporting workers and adapting to new challenges.

Also, worker precarity within DLPs is more than a data/information asymmetry problem. The logic of coloniality & extraction inherent in the political economy of the labour regime is taking advantage of issues such as massive unemployment & vulnerabilities of migrant & other oppressed communities.