“Decifra-me ou te devoro” entregadores ciclistas por aplicativo sob a uberização e o gerenciamento algorítmico em Maceió-AL

Abstract

Work uberization represents a reconfiguration of labor relations under neoliberal logic, promoting informalization and precarization through algorithmic management. This study analyzes the working conditions, occupational trajectories, and resistance strategies of app#based bike delivery workers in Maceió, Brazil, structured around four key axes: (1) the dynamics of delivery work, (2) the occupational trajectories of these workers, (3) the tension between autonomy and algorithmic control, and (4) collective organization and micro#resistances. This qualitative research is based on semi-structured interviews, field diaries, literature review, and documentary research, with a focus on the busiest delivery neighborhoods, Ponta Verde and Jatiúca. The findings reveal that, despite platform discourses promoting autonomy and entrepreneurship, the reality of delivery workers is shaped by an invisible control system, operating through performance scores, gamification, and scheduling mechanisms that restrict their agency. Many of these workers already have a history of informal and precarious labor, demonstrating how uberization does not break with these dynamics but rather restructures them under algorithmic rationality. Furthermore, the absence of institutional infrastructure exacerbates precarious conditions, forcing workers to improvise spaces and survival strategies. However, within this scenario, new forms of collective resistance emerge, challenging the promises of uberization and exposing its contradictions in the context of digital capitalism.