The need for protections beyond the contractual status The proposal for a directive “on improving working conditions in platform work”[1] is part of a broad reformist design, aimed at balancing the needs for competitiveness in the digital economy with the protection of fundamental rights. There are many interconnected legislative tracks, including the marketing and use…

On 13 December 2023, the Hungarian Supreme Court (Curia) ruled on the classification of platform work relations between a food delivery platform (Platform) and a delivery driver. This is the first platform work ruling in Hungary, and also in the Central and Eastern European region. The Curia stated that the platform worker is self-employed; therefore,…

“Hardening” process of Due Diligence The proposal for an EU directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (Brussels, 23.2.2022, COM(2022) 71 final) aims to impose sustainable production models on multinationals along the supply chains. A provisional agreement was reached on 15 March 2024. The proposal represents the culmination of a regulatory process of Corporate Social Responsibility…

War and oppression plague the world. Peaceful relations among states still seems like a distant dream. From a labour lawyer’s perspective, the quest for an international legal order among states parallels the historical development of the legal order among labour and capital on the labour market. In the purpose of fueling a discussion on the…

Barcelona, Spain – April 09, 2022: A bunch of delivery boxes placed on the ground near bikes waiting for delivery to customers, Barcelona, Spain Wirestock

Introduction: the need for a new employment presumption The Portuguese Labour Code was recently amended through Act 13/2023, of 3 April (known as the “Decent Work Agenda”), which entered into force on 1 May 2023. This reform was driven by several concerns, namely the precarious situation of platform workers. And, precisely, one of its innovative…

Introduction: Amazon and its warehouses Many of the products stored in Amazon’s Barcelona BCN3 warehouse can be ordered by a customer in Milan and received within 24 hours. In fact, several flights a day operated by Amazon Air depart from Barcelona-El Prat (Terminal 2B), to land in Milan Malpensa and reach the Amazon centre in…

Locked ©David Mangan

Not really working On 21 November 2023, the UK Supreme Court delivered its long-awaited decision in the Deliveroo case. The judgment, concluded that the Deliveroo riders organised and represented by trade union IWGB were not in an ‘employment relationship’ for the purposes of Article 11 of the ECHR. Fatal to this claim was, in particular,…

An armed conflict has always a severe impact on civilians in their role as workers, and on workplaces. Of particular concern are violations of fundamental labour rights, such as the prohibition of forced or compulsory labour, contained in the ILO Forced Labour Convention No. 29 and its Protocol of 2014, and in the Abolition of…

Yasmin Dwiputri & Data Hazards Project / Better Images of AI / AI across industries. / CC-BY 4.0

Background The proposed EU directive on improving working conditions in platform work is the first legislative initiative that attempts to regulate the use of AI, in the form of algorithmic management, in the workplace. This innovative legislative proposal pursues a double goal: first, correcting the employment status of people working in digital labour platforms and…