According to a document seen by EUROPE on Monday 6 December, the European Commission’s proposed directive to protect workers on digital platforms could result in the reclassification of the status of between 1.7 million and 4.1 million people.
In its initiative, which will be on the agenda of the College of Commissioners’ meeting on Wednesday 8 December, the European Commission proposes a set of criteria to determine whether or not a platform is an “employer”. If the platform meets at least two of these criteria, it will be presumed to be an employer.
Platforms will be able to challenge this classification, but, as we have already reported (see EUROPE 12843/20), it will effectively be up to the platform to prove that there is no subordination relationship between it and the worker.
According to the European Commission, this provision would allow for the reclassification of about 4.1 million workers out of the 5.5 million who would be misclassified, again according to the document. We have learnt that for the European Commission, these criteria should also provide legal certainty for platforms - even if, in fine, this reclassification could represent an additional cost of about 24% (taxes and contributions).
In addition, the proposal will include a section on the issue of the algorithmic management of workers in order to improve transparency on the allocation of tasks between workers and the setting of prices. The Directive should provide possible ways for workers to challenge certain automated decisions.
The proposal should impose transparency obligations on platforms to report work to national authorities and promote collective bargaining. As such, guidelines for the self-employed are expected to be presented by the European Commission on the same day (see EUROPE 12843/20).
These proposals would be in line with what the European Parliament is calling for (see EUROPE 12792/11). (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)