The draft rules, initially proposed by the European Commission (EC) in 2021, target an estimated
28 million workers in the EU, with numbers expected to rise to
43 mln next year.
European Union lawmakers and Belgium reached a political deal last month, albeit after diluting the Commission’s proposal. However, they failed to secure enough votes in favor from EU countries, with France, Germany, Estonia, and Greece abstaining.
This preliminary agreement discarded a set of criteria proposed by the Commission to determine if an online company is an employer.
Instead, national law, collective agreements, and case law will dictate whether a worker is an employee, effectively maintaining the status quo.
The burden of proof will lie with companies to demonstrate that their gig workers are not employees.
The draft rules prohibit the use of automated monitoring or decision-making systems for processing certain types of personal data of individuals performing platform work, such as
biometric data or their
emotional or psychological state.
“Ministers just approved the compromise text on the Platform Work Directive [PWD].
This will improve the rights and conditions of more than 28.5 million Europeans working in the PlatformWork economy,” Belgium, the current holder of the rotating EU presidency, announced on the social media platform X.
EU parliament to vote next month
Uber stated that the status quo remains unchanged despite EU countries’ endorsement of the February political deal.
“
EU countries have voted to maintain the status quo today, with platform worker status continuing to be decided country-to-country and court-to-court,” a spokesperson from Uber stated.
“Uber now calls on EU countries to introduce national laws that provide platform workers with the protections they deserve while maintaining the independence they prefer,” they added.
The European Parliament will vote on the agreement next month before it can become law.
