As we are just two days on from International Women's Day - which has its origins in the labour movement - a new paper on platform work in the health and social care sector in Europe is timely. Around 80% of the European health & social care workforce are women, and where women are over-represented in an industry sector, typically the working conditions are not very good. Austerity and privatisation over the past 15 years, combined with an ageing population, has increased the pressure on care workers, whether that be nurses in hospitals, residential care workers' or those who care for people in their homes. As the cracks in the public care system have grown wider, digital labour platforms have emerged to try to fill them. As Karolien Lenaerts, Milou Habraken, Dirk Gillis, Noah Vangeel and Laurène Thil, academics in the research institute for work and society at KU Leuven university, point out in their new discussion paper, the value proposition of the platforms can appear attractive to both care receivers and care workers. For care receivers, they have the possibility to book workers' who have been rated by others' in a similarly dependent situation, a level of control they may not be used to in the public care system. For care workers, the offer of the platforms' speaks to the gendered reality of their lives: as they often have (unpaid) caring responsibilities at home, flexible working and scheduling can be appealing. Health & social care is in the top three sectors in Europe for the percentage of part-time workers. However, the flexibility these platforms' offer can and usually does come at the expense of worker security, including health and safety (OSH), which is the focus of this paper. The authors' list the following OSH risks: "Exposure to emotionally demanding situations, a high risk of being exposed to violence, discrimination and harassment, a high workload, work intensity and work pressure, exposure to biological and chemical risks, and musculoskeletal risks related to lifting loads". Of course, these risks are prevalent in the health & social sector as a whole, but they find that algorithmic management and the worker surveillance that accompanies it on care platforms' can actually exacerbate these dangers. Perhaps the most important example of this is the ratings system, which puts workers in a position of weakness relative to their clients, opening up new avenues for exploitation.This problem is worsened by the fact that the vast majority of platform care workers' are hired on a self-employed basis, meaning the wide array of OSH protections which exist in the EU do not apply to these workers. The platforms' do little to make-up for this on a voluntary basis, with the authors' finding that "attention to prevention and management of OSH risks is almost absent in digital platform work, and only few examples of actual measures and practices exist." Just like in food delivery or ridehail, when something goes wrong platform care workers' have to fend for themselves, but these risks are likely to be greater when you are working inside the four walls of someone else's home. While domestic work has historically been notoriously informal and exploitative, 'Uberisation' is not generating the greater transparency, accountability and rights that these jobs desperately need.The exact size of platform care is difficult to pin down due to a lack of good data. One survey of 16 EU countries and one EFTA country in 2022 found platform healthcare was the fourth largest form of platform work, while platform child and elderly care was the sixth largest. Another survey found that 2% of people working in health & social care in Europe obtain most of their income via digital labour platforms, while 3% obtain part of their income in this way. This is about par with the prevalence of platform work in Europe's workforce as a whole. Part of the problem with trying to analyse Uberisation in this sector is that in every European country there are usually a variety of local and national players', each with their own bespoke offer and policies. While the study finds that Care[dot]com (an American platform) now operates in 10 EU countries' and Yoopies (a French platform) in 19 EU countries, these platforms do not just offer care work, as one can sign-up for gardening, tutoring, taking a dog for a walk, etc. The point is, platform care has not yet undergone the concentration and centralisation of capital that the food delivery and ridehail sectors have experienced.Indeed, the authors' find that a lot of care platforms' survive through partnerships, especially with health insurance firms. Some have even been launched "with the support of public authorities". In doctor's offices in Brussels, it is common to see flyers' for Belgian platform Helpper. Despite offering an alternative to public care provision, these platforms' may only be able to grow at scale through finding ways to attract public subsidy and procurement contracts.As for the workers, could the Platform Work Directive (the latest on that in the 'news round-up' section below) help alleviate OSH risks? The authors' are sceptical. Even if the presumption of employment in the Directive did deliver employment contracts for platform carers, other aspects are needed to ensure good OSH, including strong worker organisation, proper implementation of the laws, and well resourced labour inspectorates to conduct inspections. This leads the authors to question whether "a minimum set of mandatory rules and regulations on OSH should be applicable irrespective of the classification of the employment relationship, which could perhaps be a way forward in critical sectors like the health and social care sector." That raises the question of who would pay to deliver these minimum mandatory rules, which would include training, risk assessments and personal protective equipment? Public provision would be another case of socialising the costs and privatising the profits. In looking for solutions, perhaps we need to ask a more fundamental question: should anyone ever be allowed to profit from care, digital labour platform or otherwise?
Ben Wray, Gig Economy Project co-ordinator
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Gig Economy news round-up |
- FRANCE TRIES TO AMEND PLATFORM WORK DIRECTIVE ON EVE OF VOTE: The French Government has made a last-minute bid to amend the Platform Work Directive, in a move which has led to accusations of lying. On Friday [8 March], an amended French text circulated which stated the Directive "respects the reality of the contractual relationship between a person performing platform work and the concerned digital labour platform". If agreed this would be a major watering-down of the presumption of employment, which has hitherto been based on assessment of the facts in the working relationship, not platforms' terms & conditions. The proposed amendment has been greeted with anger by European Parliament (EP) interlocutors, who have insisted that the trilogue agreement with the Belgian Presidency was the final negotiation on the text and that it would not be re-opened. With reports that France had been telling interested parties that the EP had agreed to re-open the negotiation, Kim Van Sparrentak, Green MEP and deputy rapporteur on the Directive, said that France was "literally lying". Trade union sources insist that France's amendment is a wrecking move to try to prevent a Yes vote in favour of the Belgian text at the crunch EPSCO Council meeting on 11 March. The Estonian Government is reportedly considering shifting to a Yes position on the Belgian-negotiated text, which would be enough for the Platform Work Directive to be backed by the Council if all other positions remain the same. A debate on the Directive was due to take place in the Estonian Parliament on Friday, but it has been re-scheduled for Monday, the same time as the crunch EPSCO meeting. Solenn Paulic, Agency Europe reporter, said that Estonia will make its mind up on Monday morning before the meeting of EU ministers, and if they do not change their mind there will be "a final window of one or two weeks...to save the file". Read more here.
- EUROPEAN PARLIAMENTARY GROUPS' STEP UP PLATFORM WORK CAMPAIGNING: Politicians from the centre-right to radical left have stepped up their campaigning on the EU Platform Work Directive this week, with one eye on the looming European Parliamentary elections in early June. The centre-right European People's Party, the largest group in the European Parliament, issued a statement claiming that the "Liberals and Socialists" were to blame for the Directive not passing, describing Germany's Social Democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz and France's liberal President Emmanuel Macron as "Uber's useful fools". Meanwhile, Nicolas Schmit, European Jobs & Social Rights commissioner with responsibility for the Platform Work Directive, is the lead candidate of the centre-left Socialists & Democrats Group in the Parliament, and his campaign was launched at a rally alongside Scholz, who said of their candidate that he had done "remarkable work in the EU, fighting for social advances and workers' rights." Meanwhile, France Insoumise, part of the Left Group in the European Parliament, have announced that Ben Ali Brahim, leader of the INV union which organises Uber drivers', will be among their candidates at the election. As France Insoumise politicians and activists protested at the French Parliament against Macron's blocking of the Platform Work Directive, a party source told Euractiv that: “If the file fails in Brussels, we’ll be talking about it left, right and centre on the campaign trail."
- RIDERS' IN "WARNING STRIKE" IN AUSTRIA FOR HIGHER PAY: Food delivery couriers have taken strike action across Austria, demanding a pay rise that at least matches inflation. The two-hour "warning strike" of Lieferando (Just Eat) and Foodora (Delivery Hero) riders, organised by the Vida union, was the first of its kind in the central European country, where disputes are usually resolved through a comprehensive system of collective bargaining. Participation in the strike was strong, especially among Lieferando riders, who are employed. Out of 1200 Lieferando riders, 200 joined strike rallies, which took place in four cities and at five hubs. The platforms have offered a 5.8% rise, but the union is demanding at least 8.7%. “They gave us no choice," Toni Pravdic, negotiator for the vida union, said. "The employers have not moved a millimeter towards full inflation compensation." A Lieferando spokesperson said that an 8.7% increase would raise hourly pay to what he described as an "impressive" €19 an hour, adding: “Customers would not be willing to pay the necessary price increases; no one can afford it.” Foodora, which hires their workers' through a third-status 'free-service contract', said that they wanted "a quick compromise that is acceptable to both sides". A union source told GEP that more strikes would be planned if the companies didn't come up with a serious pay offer. Read more here.
- IRISH PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE HEARS CALLS FOR RIDERS' "RIGHT TO DIGNITY": An Enterprise committee in the Irish Parliament heard calls for food delivery couriers' to have employment rights on Wednesday [6 March], with their lack of access to toilets raised as an example of the lack of "dignity" which accompanies bogus self-employment. Teresa Hannick, an organiser in the Siptu union, told parliamentarians that: “Unfortunately, we still come across cases where they are not allowed to use restaurant toilets. At the same time, the platform companies do not provide any alternative option, which clearly violates workers’ right to dignity." Hannick said that algorithmic discrimination and unpaid waiting time, as well as low pay, were also major reasons why platform workers needed employment rights. In Ireland, food delivery couriers at platforms like Deliveroo are hired on a self-employed basis. The Irish Government supported the watered-down Belgian Platform Work Directive text on 16 February, but had refused to back the more ambitious Spanish-negotiated text in December. Riders' in Dublin took strike action alongside their UK colleagues on Valentine's Day, demanding a pay rise. Read more here.
- NO NEW VTCs TO BE LICENSED IN BARCELONA: The Barcelona Metropolitan Authority (AMB), which is in charge of private hire (VTC) licenses for the Catalan capital, has confirmed that there will be no new licenses in the city, continuing the Catalan Government's strategy of restricting the private hire trade in favour of the public taxi model. In 2022 the Catalan Government passed a law which effectively restricted VTCs to limousines and mini-vans, the first and only law in Spain's autonomous communities to create a clear separation of roles between taxis and VTCs. The publication of AMB's new VTC ordinance does not open the space for any new VTCs, only speaking of an "extension and/or authorisation of transmissions". Around the same time as the tight restrictions on VTCs were introduced in 2022, Picmi Taxi, an app for users of Barcelona taxis, was established. In June 2023 the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) found that Spain's ratio of one VTC for every 30 taxis was not legal, raising the hopes of VTC employer associations' that it was possible to strike down Catalonia's strict VTC law. But the Spanish Government quickly introduced an amendment to its rules to comply with the CJEU ruling, which found that restrictions on VTCs were still applicable as long as it was justified by "the general interest" rather than an arbitrary ratio, and the Catalan law still stands. Read more here.
Have we missed something important? You can help keep us informed by sending information to GEP@BraveNewEurope.com.
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The Brussels Appeal: Proposal from the Forum on Alternatives to Uberisation, 21-22 February 2024
Following the fourth Transnational Alternatives to Uberisation forum, which took place 21-22 February 2024, some of the participant organisations of the platform workers’ movement have prepared the following statement – The Brussels Appeal – to take forward the movement from here. The Gig Economy Project is publishing this statement so all gig workers’ and their organisations can access it and consider giving it their support. Puedes leer el comunicado en español aquí. Vous pouvez lire la déclaration en français ici.
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- On 4-5 April, a conference at Toulouse University will be held on 'Micro-work, platforms and employment: Multidisciplinary analysis and international and comparative approach', marking the end of the ANR TraPlaNum project. The event will also be available on Zoom (in French). Click here for the full programme and to register.
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The Gig Economy Project is a media network for gig workers and we welcome contributions from workers, writers, academics, activists - anyone who wants to stand up for workers' rights in the gig economy.
If you would like to write for the site, discuss arranging an interview with GEP, or simply have information about developments in the gig economy in Europe you think we should be aware of, get in touch.
Contact project co-ordinator Ben Wray at GEP@BraveNewEurope.com or send a direct message to the Twitter: @project_gig.
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