What do platform workers in the UK gig economy want?

Despite the considerable debate concerning the gig economy, research has yet to investigate what platform workers themselves want. In part, this is due to the difficulty undertaking traditional social surveys in this sector. Therefore, this article makes use of a novel research design that generates a strategic non-probability sample of 510 platform workers with which to investigate workers’ preferences regarding labour rights, representation and voice. Findings suggest strong support for labour rights, trade unions and codetermination. The low pay, insecurity, risk and lack of organisational voice that we find provides a rationale for these preferences. Moreover, platform workers’ preferences are seemingly influenced by wider inequalities, with significant differences according to gender and country of birth.