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The book deals with the phenomenon of platform work and contains national reports (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom), other more transversal reports dealing with the issue of fundamental (collective) workers' rights, as well as the applicable European legal framework. The idea of the book is to underline differences and similarities between the Member States' Systems and the UK System and to understand if there is a common ground of rights and protections for platform workers in the EU.
This report explores three issues related to the growing phenomenon of Digital Labour Platforms: firstly, how to measure platform work as a form of employment incorporating elements such as regularity of provision, time allocated and income generated; on this basis, and drawing on a new dedicated survey (COLLEEM), the article quantifies and categorises platform work into sporadic, secondary and main. Secondly, it provides an empirical investigation of the association between individual characteristics, such as gender, age, family composition, education and motivation, and the probability of carrying out particular types of platform work, such as microtasking, creative services, software development, transportation and so on. The analysis highlights substantial heterogeneity in the attributes and motivations of the workers performing different tasks. Finally, it discusses the employment status of platform workers and provides some descriptive statistics suggesting that a large share of platform workers perceive themselves as employees, even though they are in most cases legally considered self-employed.
Emerging out of the collaborative work conducted within the Working Group "Mechanisms to activate and support the collaborative economy" of the COST Action "From Sharing to Caring: Examining Socio-Technical Aspects of the Collaborative Economy", the book questions the varied set of organizational forms collected under the label of "collaborative" or "sharing" economy --ranging from grassroots peer-to-peer solidarity initiatives to corporate owned platforms-- from the perspective of what is known as the European social values: respect for human dignity and human rights (including those of minorities), freedom, democracy, equality, and the rule of law. Therefore, the edited collection focuses on the governance of such economic activities, and how they organize labour, cooperation and social life. From individual motivations to participating, to platform use by local groups, until platform design in its political as well as technological dimensions, the book provides a comparative overview and critical discussion on the processes, narratives and organizational models at play in the collaborative economy. On such a basis, the volume offers tools, suggestions and visions for the future that may inform the designing of policies, technologies, and business models in Europe.
Providing an insightful analysis of the key issues and significant trends relating to labour within the platform economy, this Modern Guide considers the existing comparative evidence covering all world regions. It also provides an in-depth look at digital labour platforms in their historical, economic and geographical contexts.
The recent surge of digital labour platforms has led to new forms of work organisation and tasks distribution across the workforce. This has raised several questions about the functioning and the benefits deriving from the reorganisation of work that those platforms entail and the associated risks. The European Commission assessed online platforms in a May 2016 communication, focusing on both their innovation opportunities and regulatory challenges. In June 2016 the Commission also adopted its European Agenda for the Collaborative Economy, which clarified the concept and provided some guidance on the employment status of platform workers and the EU definition of worker. The European Pillar of Social Rights aims to address some of the policy challenges associated to new forms of employment, including platform work. As accompanying initiatives, the Commission presented in December 2017 a proposal for a new Directive on transparent and predictable working conditions, and in March 2018 a proposal for a Council Recommendation on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed. A crucial issue in designing the policy response to the emergence of digital labour platforms is the lack of reliable evidence. In 2017, the JRC conducted the COLLEEM pilot survey, an initial attempt to provide quantitative evidence on platform work, responding to calls by the European Council and the European Parliament. The survey provides a basis for an initial estimation of platform work in 14 Member States.
Platform work – the matching of the supply of and demand for paid labour through an online platform – often depends on workers who operate in a “grey area” between the archetype of an employee and a self-employed worker. This important book explores the utility of the International Labour Organization’s existing standards in governing this phenomenon. It indicates that despite their relevance, many standards have little or no impact. The standards apply to the issue but they fail to connect with it. The author shows how three ILO conventions – the Home Work Convention, 1996 (No. 177), the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181), and the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189) – can be revitalised to have an impact on the platform work debate. In the course of the analysis he responds in depth to such questions as the following: What are digital labour platforms? What does decent work mean? Did the ILO centenary fundamentally change anything? What is the link between private employment services and platform work? How do crowdworkers relate to homeworkers and teleworkers? Are platform workers engaged in domestic work? What form could a future ILO standard on platform work take? Given that the ILO plans to start discussions on a potential future standard for platform work in 2022, this book will prove very useful in highlighting the issues and standards that such discussions should consider. Research has shown that the techniques and tools of the platform economy have spread far beyond gig work, resulting in widespread “gigification” and restructuring of workplace behaviours and relationships, jobs, and communities across the world. For this and other reasons, including the book’s detailed analysis of issues not addressed elsewhere, labour lawyers, in-house counsel, researchers, and policymakers will gain valuable insight into what decent work in the platform economy would require, thus greatly broadening the discussion on this difficult-to-regulate phenomenon.
Work Organization has achieved recent prominence in European policy, as new employment guidelines are embodied in the policies of all European Member States. New forms of Work Organization, properly understood, offer collaborative competitive advantage to European enterprises. This book, based on decades of action research in separate European nations, identifies the research background from which these new insights and policy initiatives have emerged, with continuing lessons to be learned from differences. Work Organization is the missing link which enables innovation and training to produce sustainable increases in productivity: this is not mere academic theory but also vital practical business. The book launches a new European research agenda, which is attracting interest from across the developed world and beyond. Rather than arguing for a stronger role for the state, or simply leaving matters to the market, the book presents a “third way” based on networks and coalitions, illustrated with numerous current European case studies, which provide explanations for developments at the level of enterprises, regions and the European Union itself. The book provides valuable insights into new European Commission initiatives and Transatlantic Dialogue, and provides the foundations for renewed democratic dialogue.
The digitalisation of our economies has transformed and disrupted labour markets and business sectors across the European Union (EU), changing the nature, organisation and conditions of work. One of the central and most visible players in this transformation are the digital labour platforms that match the demand for and supply of labour, by connecting platform workers with clients (Eurofound, 2018a; European Commission, 2020). Digital labour platforms have rapidly gained ground in Europe in the past decade (European Commission, 2020; ILO, 2021). However, lawmakers and social partners have struggled to fit these novel business practices and new forms of work into existing regulatory frameworks. These developments are also coupled with other labour market trends, such as the rise in non-standard work. Platform work creates new work opportunities by lowering the barriers to labour market entry and by providing workers with options to earn an income through flexible work (Eurofound, 2018a; European Commission, 2020; ILO, 2021). Platform work, however, may also present challenges for workers, such as an ambiguous employment status, inadequate access to social protection, weak bargaining power, poor working conditions, and safety and health issues (EU-OSHA, 2017; European Commission, 2020). This report provides an overview and assessment of the occupational safety and health (OSH) challenges and opportunities for platform workers. It builds on a thorough review of the recent academic and grey literature on the topic. Literature and empirical data on safety and health in platform work, however, are scarce. Despite the growing body of research on platform work, the issue of OSH, and especially those aspects relating to platform workers' protection and the prevention and management of OSH risks, have only recently become more prominent in the literature. To the best of our knowledge, statistics on the number of accidents, injuries or occupational diseases related to platform work are not systematically collected or publicly available.
Digital labour platforms are a new form of coordinating the provision of labour services enabled by the latest technological revolution. Many authors claim that digital labour platforms have the potential to disrupt the world of work, both positively by boosting participation in the labour market through better matching procedures, and negatively by circumventing regulation and lowering the quality of employment. To assess the impact of digital labour platforms on employment and on working conditions, we need precise estimates of the number of people doing platform work; in addition we need information on what type of services they provide, how frequently these services are provided, how much money is earned as a result of this provision and so on. At the same time, when we talk about the impact of digital labour platforms on working conditions, it is imperative to understand whether platform work is just a side gig as it is often claimed, or whether it represents a major source of income and for whom. Thus, we need to ascertain the regularity, time allocated and income generated from platform work, as well as the employment status of platform workers, since this will provide information as to whether they have other forms of social protection from other jobs. In 2017, the JRC conducted the COLLEEM pilot survey, an initial attempt to provide quantitative evidence on platform work. This report builds on previous findings and contributes by describing the results of the second wave of COLLEEM (2018).
This engaging and timely book provides an in-depth analysis of work and labour relations within global platform capitalism with a specific focus on digital platforms that organise labour processes, known as labour platforms. Well-respected contributors thoroughly examine both online and offline platforms, their distinct differences and the important roles they play for both large transnational companies and those with a smaller global reach.