Platform economy database
Database of initiatives and court cases in the EU
Eurofound’s platform economy database provides information on 411 initiatives and court cases that exist or have been implemented in relation to activities in the platform economy. The database was last updated in March 2025 and provides metadata for each entry, such as geographical scope, year, type of initiative, actors involved, sector and companies concerned. Initiatives include legal instruments such as legislative changes or court decisions, as well as voluntary interventions undertaken by different stakeholders to address issues around platform work.
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Germany
The Regional Labour Court of Munich ruled that no employment relationship exists between a crowdworker and an internet platform operator. The platform facilitated tasks such as checking product presentations in retail or petrol stations for brand manufacturers, which the crowdworker could accept via an app. The dispute revolved around whether the agreement constituted an employment contract.
The court found no employment relationship between the plaintiff (crowdworker) and the defendant (platform operator).
First instance, issued by the Landesarbeitsgericht (LAG) Munich.
Motivation for Ruling: - No Obligation: The agreement did not obligate the crowdworker to accept tasks or the platform to offer tasks. - Lack of Personal Dependency: An employment contract requires work to be performed under instructions and in personal dependency, which was not the case here. - Independent Task Acceptance: Tasks could be selected within a self-chosen radius, indicating autonomy. - Framework Agreement: The agreement was a framework contract, which allowed termination via email.
The platform economy is one of those moving targets, which, despite receiving increasing media and policy attention, has proven difficult to regulate. Given the heterogeneity of employment relationships, business models, types of platform work and cross-border issues, this is not surprising.
Technological change is accelerating as the capacity of electronic devices to digitally store, process and communicate information expands. Digitalisation is transforming the EU economy and labour markets: nearly one-third of EU workplaces are categorised as highly digitalised. What are the implications of the digital revolution for employment and work?
The rapid rise of the platform economy has led to a marked transformation of European labour markets, and existing regulatory frameworks and voluntary initiatives have yet to catch up. While platform work offers opportunities for workers and employers and potentially contributes to innovation, economic growth and competitiveness in the EU, it has been criticised from the beginning because of the poor employment and working conditions often experienced by workers.
While 2020 may come to be seen as the year platform work gathered pace and started to go mainstream – thanks in large part to COVID-19 containment measures sparking an increase in food and grocery delivery – 2021 could be the year that regulation of platform work is set in motion.
