Grounded Research for Decent Work: DiPLab’s Myriam Raymond at RDW 2025 in Geneva

We’re proud to share that DiPLab research was featured at the 9th Regulating for Decent Work (RDW) Conference, hosted by the International Labour Office in Geneva from 2–4 July 2025. In a joint paper with Nagla Rizk (A2K4D, American University in Cairo), DiPLab’s Myriam Raymond presented research titled Regulating Digital Platform Payments: Barriers to Fair Compensation and Policy Implications for Egyptian Microworkers.

This study draws on extensive survey data (N=948) and focus group discussions with Egyptian microworkers performing small online tasks on global platforms.  It sheds light on the lived reality of financial precarity: unpredictable payments, opaque fees, currency exchange losses, and reliance on informal intermediaries. Many workers remain excluded from fair financial participation due to technical, institutional, and regulatory gaps. Our findings emphasize that these payment frictions are not marginal inconveniences—they are central to workers’ experience and reinforce their vulnerability in ways largely invisible to existing labor regulation. The paper calls for targeted financial inclusion policies, better platform accountability, and a serious rethink of regulatory frameworks to protect microworkers as legitimate workers deserving fair pay and institutional support.

Within the frame of this ongoing study, a closed-door meeting with key policymakers and public actors will be convened on November 2025. Amongst the participants: Egyptian Ministry of ManPower, Central Bank of Egypt, Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), ILO Egypt’s office, National Telecommunications Regulating Agency (NTRA), Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA), and the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises Development Agency (MSMEDA).  

This year’s RDW theme focused on Strengthening labour institutions and worker voice to deliver decent employment. It brought together an extraordinary range of grounded research from all over the globe—scholars, policymakers, and practitioners all exchanging ideas on how to make work fairer, safer, and more inclusive. Every session, keynote, and plenary was packed with insights. It was a privilege to be part of such a collective effort where research meets purpose and gives real meaning to what we do.