The 2024 Directive on improving working conditions through platforms is the first European act on the use of algorithmic systems in the workplace. It regulates the employment status of platform workers. It assumes that people employed by platforms cannot be unjustifiably treated as self-employed. The Directive introduces a presumption of an employment relationship, particularly if there is evidence that workers are given instructions or are subject to the same control by their employer as in-house employees, in accordance with national law, EU case law and collective agreements. The burden of proof will lie with the platform, which means it will have to prove that the employment relationship does not exist. The directive also imposes an obligation on EU countries to establish appropriate regulations on the presumption of employment relationships on platforms. As EU legislators assure, this will allow “balancing the imbalance of power between the digital labour platform and the person performing the work”. The implementation of Directive 2024/2831 of 2024 will require a precise definition of the criteria for determining the status of workers through platforms. Member States will decide on the final shape of the adopted legal solutions. They will also decide whether to make changes to the applicable labour law regulations. Member states will also determine whether these rules will cover both digital platforms and other sectors, or whether they will develop new solutions in this regard. Certainly, precise criteria for the status of platform workers need to be developed, as this will be relevant to the forms of work currently used.
Gertruda Uścińska (Mon,) studied this question.