Explore Online Labour Markets with the Online Labour Observatory
The map shows the most popular online labour occupations in Europe. In Latin Europe the leading online work category is writing and translation, while North Europe provides creative and multimedia work as well as sales and marketing support. Large East European countries are strongest in software development and technology, which is consistent with the fact that they are also significant destinations for traditional technology outsourcing. The map is based on the Online Labour Index, a system that tracks the utilisation of online work across countries and occupations in near real-time.
Explore occupationsThe Online Labour Index 2020
The Online Labour Index (OLI) is the first economic indicator that provides an online gig economy equivalent of conventional labour market statistics. It measures the supply and demand of online freelance labour across countries and occupations by tracking the number of projects and tasks across platforms in real time. Its 2020 update (OLI 2020) introduces wider coverage, new interactive visualizations, and easy access to data.
Explore the OLI 2020Research
How big is the online labour workforce? Our data-driven approach to this tricky question
Development in digital communication technologies has made transacting work remotely easier and more economical. Online labour platforms, also known as online outsourcing, crowd-work, or online gig platforms, are at the[…]
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Introducing the Online Labour Observatory: Data on female participation in the remote gig economy and more
We are excited to announce a new collaboration between the Oxford Internet Institute’s iLabour team and the International Labour Organization (ILO), a United Nations agency. This collaboration is called the[…]
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Exploring new facets of global online freelancing with the Online Labour Index 2020
We launched the Online Labour Index (OLI) almost five years ago. Since then, it has become a point of reference for scholars and policy experts investigating the market for online gig[…]
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Prof. Vili Lehdonvirta
Professor of Economic Sociology and Digital Social Research
Vili Lehdonvirta is an economic sociologist whose research focuses on digital technologies — how they are governed, how they shape the organisation of economic activities, and with what implications to workers, consumers, businesses, and policy.
Dr. Uma Rani
Senior Economist
Uma Rani is Senior Economist at the Research Department of the International Labour Office in Geneva, Switzerland. She is a Development Economist, and her research focuses on transformations in the digital economy, wherein she explores how labour and social institutions interact with public policies and can provide decent working conditions to workers.
Dr. Fabian Stephany
Postdoctoral Researcher
Fabian Stephany is a postdoctoral researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford. As an economist and social data scientist, Fabian investigates how skills and occupations relate and how we can create more sustainable jobs via data-driven reskilling in times of technological disruption.
See all authors
Our author team unites researcher from Sociology, Economics, Politics, and many other disciplines.
All authorsExplore Online Labour Markets with the Online Labour Observatory
The map on the left shows the most popular online labour occupations in Europe. In Latin Europe the leading online work category is writing and translation, while North Europe provides creative and multimedia work as well as sales and marketing support. Large East European countries are strongest in software development and technology, which is consistent with the fact that they are also significant destinations for traditional technology outsourcing. The map is based on the Online Labour Index, a system that tracks the utilisation of online work across countries and occupations in near real-time.
Explore occupations
The Online Labour Index 2020
The Online Labour Index (OLI) is the first economic indicator that provides an online gig economy equivalent of conventional labour market statistics. It measures the supply and demand of online freelance labour across countries and occupations by tracking the number of projects and tasks across platforms in real time. Its 2020 update (OLI 2020) introduces wider coverage, new interactive visualizations, and easy access to data.
Explore the OLI 2020 