Articles | Volume 81, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-81-709-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-81-709-2026
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06 Nov 2026
Standard article |  | 06 Nov 2026

Growing together and drifting apart: on the emergence and fragility of social bonds among food delivery riders

Mê-Linh Riemann

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Geogr. Helv., 81, 325–333, https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-81-325-2026,https://doi.org/10.5194/gh-81-325-2026, 2026
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Cited articles

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Ametowobla, D. and Kirchner, S.: Varieties of platform capitalism? Competition, regime types and the diversity of food delivery platforms across Europe and North America, Socio-Econ. Rev., 23, 899–931, 2025. 
Baril, É.: Citizen-rentier-ship: Delivering the Undocumented to Labour Platforms in Paris, Antipode, 56, 1132–1151, https://doi.org/10.1111/anti.13009, 2023. 
Blumer, H.: The Methodological Position of Symbolic Interactionism, in: Symbolic Interactionism: Perspective and Method, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1–60, ISBN 978-0-13-879924-3, 1969. 
Bonini, T., Treré, E., Yu, Z., Singh, S., Cargnelutti, D., and López-Ferrández, F. J.: Cooperative affordances: How instant messaging apps afford learning, resistance and solidarity among food delivery workers, Convergence, 30, 554–571, https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565231153505, 2024. 
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Short summary
Research on platform labour often frames fragmentation as a key obstacle to solidarity and collective organising. While this literature has generated important insights into the complex conditions of workers’ resistance, less attention has been paid to the social significance of shared logistical spaces such as hubs and warehouses. This article addresses this gap by examining how social bonds among food delivery riders emerge, evolve and disintegrate in everyday work settings.
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