Platform economy database
Database of initiatives and court cases in the EU
Eurofound’s platform economy database provides information on 393 initiatives and court cases that exist or have been implemented in relation to activities in the platform economy. The database was last updated in August 2024 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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The database currently contains 393 entries and was last updated in August 2024.
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Spain
In 2019, the Spanish trade union (Unión General de Trabajadores,UGT) filed a complaint with the Madrid labour inspectorate against the Amazon Flex platform, considering that it commits fraud around the figure of the bogus self-employed, since the workers use their own cars.
In October 2020, the labour inspectorate has officially registered 4,066 Amazon Flex delivery workers who worked as self-employed workers in the general Social Security regime. The ruling requires Amazon to pay over €6 million in unpaid social security contributions.
The following recent changes to this court ruling have been recorded.
The Labour Court No. 42 of Madrid has ruled on January 22nd, 2024, that Amazon must employ 3,688 delivery drivers in Spain.
The Amazon Flex delivery drivers had to use their own vehicles for deliveries, while their work was algorithmically managed through an Amazon app. In the case brought forward by the UGT union, the court emphasises when working conditions are controlled by an algorithm, there is an employment relationship. Moreover, the rights of the delivery drivers are at threat due to the involvement of algorithmic management, and the court is calling for algorithm transparency and the establishment of protection of the workers. In the ruling, the court restores the labour rights of the delivery drivers and confirms the positions of the UGT union.
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.
