Uncovering the Invisible Workforce: Mapping the Working Conditions of Sub-Saharan Africa’s Data Workers in the AI Ecosystem

This project investigates the working conditions of data workers in Sub-Saharan Africa who enable the global artificial intelligence ecosystem. Using Karl Marx’s Workers’ Inquiry method that prioritizes workers’ voices, it will examine job security, wages, and legal protections. By analyzing policies, laws, and industry structures impacting these workers, the project aims to identify interventions to ensure decent work in AI. Outcomes include informing workers’ rights advocacy, policy revisions, and future initiatives targeting improved labour conditions for this crucial invisible workforce. The project will collect qualitative data from workers and policy documents. Analysis will be both thematic and critical discourse. Initial outputs are academic publications and conference presentations to enable future research funding and practical applications.