Platform workers who are ordered through online applications will receive more rights and the status of a gig worker *.
Ministers of Social Affairs agreed EUreaching an agreement after a break in negotiations for several months.
Online platform workers, couriers and drivers, whose services can be ordered through mobile applications, will receive some improvement in working conditions. However, only those who meet certain criteria – at least three out of seven – including a certain appearance and a fixed fare for travel, will receive the new rights.
Benefits include employment status, sick leave, and paid leave. To this list, food delivery man Matheus would like to add health insurance: “If I get hurt in an accident, they won’t do anything for me.”
The agreement reached limits the use of algorithms that distribute tasks over time in accordance with the capabilities of the company and customer preferences. However, five EU countries, including Spain and Germany, believe that this agreement lags behind technical and social progress. They intend to discuss it in negotiations with the European Parliament.
Ludovic Voet, representative of the European Trade Union Confederation, supports the position of the Council of the EU:
“The deal certainly turned out to be less ambitious, because additional obstacles were put in the way of its achievement in the form of three criteria, and not two. In addition, the possibility of national concessions is being discussed. As a result, the main fundamental requirement of the European Commission, namely, the provision of workers with the rights they deserve, is not being fulfilled.
Among taxi drivers, the agreement provokes strong reactions and protests. On the other hand, digital companies such as Uber are increasing their lobbying of politicians. They argue that the text of the agreement does not give online platform workers sufficient guarantees and confidence in the future.
* The gig economy is a type of freelancing (the word “gig” means a one-time part-time job). People are hired for specific projects, where they perform tasks under a short-term contract. At the same time, the business pays the contractor for the result, and not for the number of hours worked.
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