Platform economy database
Database of initiatives and court cases in the EU
Eurofound’s platform economy database provides information on 443 initiatives and court cases that exist or have been implemented in relation to activities in the platform economy. The database was last updated in November 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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The database currently contains 443 entries and was last updated in November 2025.
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France
In June 2018, following the deactivation of his account, an ex-Uber driver argued that his relationship with Uber was effectively one of an employee, not an independent contractor. He claimed that each of the 2,038 trips he completed was a separate fixed-term employment contract. He asked the tribunal to reclassify his "partnership" as a permanent employment contract, rule that his account deactivation was an unfair dismissal, and award him significant compensation for unpaid overtime, meal allowances, damages for undeclared work, and more.
Uber contended that its relationship with the driver was purely a commercial partnership and that he was an independent professional who used their app to connect with customers. Uber argued that because the driver was registered as an independent operator, there was a legal presumption that he was not an employee. They claimed the partnership ended due to serious breaches of the app's rules by the driver.
The tribunal sided with Uber and declared that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. This decision was made at the first instance level, in the Labour Court (Conseil de prud'hommes) of Paris.
The central issue was whether a "relationship of subordination" existed, which is the key test for an employment contract in French law. According to the ruling:
Because the driver was registered as an independent operator and had control over his work schedule and activities, the tribunal concluded the relationship was commercial and therefore the case should be referred to the Commercial Court of Paris.
The driver appealed.
The following recent changes to this court ruling have been recorded.
In March 2020, the Court of Cassation classified the relation between Uber and its drivers as an employment contract. The ruling followed a complaint issued by a driver in 2017 after his account had been deleted by the platform.
Following the decision of the Court of Cassation in 2020, the Paris Court of Appeal ruled that the service contract between Uber and its drivers had to be redefined as an employment contract as of May 2021.
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.
