European Commission launches bill with rights for app workers

The European Commission has announced a draft with rules to give rights to digital platform workers such as Uber and Deliveroo, including employment benefits in many cases.

The proposal, presented on Thursday (9), marks the bloc’s latest attempt to regulate technology companies and ensure equal conditions of competition between online and traditional companies.

According to the text, companies will be considered employers if they supervise work performance electronically, restrict the ability of workers to choose their working hours or tasks and prevent them from working for third parties.

“No one is trying to kill, stop or impede the development of the platform economy,” said EU Commissioner for Employment and Social Affairs Nicholas Schmit.

However, he said, the rules are needed to ensure that the new business models “respect the labor and social standards that have been established in the European Union”.

The commissioner stated that the measure could reach between 1.7 million and 4.1 million workers. In all, 28 million people work in more than 500 online platform companies in the 27 countries of the bloc.

The rules will also require food delivery apps and other companies to be more transparent about how they use algorithms to monitor and evaluate workers and set tasks and rates.

The proposal shifts the burden of proof to companies rather than workers when a dispute arises over whether the worker is self-employed or employed.

Delivery Platforms Europe, a lobbying group that includes Uber, Deliveroo, Glovo and Delivery Hero, said the proposed rules could lead to job cuts.

Just Eat Takeaway.com, Europe’s largest food delivery company, said it “has welcomed” the rules.