Time in Transit: Temporal Compression in Logistics

Beyond its roles in connecting and constituting objects, places, people, and practices, the logistics industry is intricately connected to the management of time. Scholars have underscored the importance of temporality in platform economy and last-mile logistics (Chen 2020, Hassel and Sieker 2022). However, within container shipping, which serves as the backbone of global trade, there is a dearth of research on temporality even when its significance has been acknowledged. Nonetheless, the revolution in logistics, containerization, and just-in-time production techniques over the last four decades has put tremendous pressure on the human body in the name of speed, adding to the messy and violent nature of logistics (Cowen, 2014). 

This paper examines the temporal experiences of seafarers and transport drivers as part of capitalist circulation. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Rotterdam and Ho Chi Minh City, as well as digital ethnography, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of the various aspects of workers’ temporal experiences in their personal and professional lives, including how individuals navigate their work schedules, waiting, delays, punctuality, disruptions, anchorage, and time in transit. It shows that the increasing containerization and digitalization in container shipping have come hand in hand with the growing pressure of "temporal compression” which compels individuals to achieve more within shorter timeframes, often at the expense of their well-being. By attending to the temporal experiences of the worker, the paper critically analyzes the social and cultural consequences of time in the context of racial capitalism and its impact on human agency and dignity.