Local and regional leaders have highlighted to
Nicolas Schmit, new European Commissioner for Jobs
and Social Rights, that the EU needs to set clear
rules for platform economy to guarantee workers'
rights and ensure a level playing field between
online and offline economic activities in the
single market.
Two opinions adopted by the European Committee of the
Regions (CoR) today stress that many current EU
regulations are outdated against the emergence of new
business models and non-standard forms of employment
that are frequent in digital platforms. Notably the
implementation of the
e-Commerce Directive
, which dates back to 2000, has led to several court
cases surrounding companies such as Uber and Airbnb.
Speaking at the European Committee of the Regions'
plenary session in his first public appearance as
Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit said: "The new
Commission’s agenda strives to address the ongoing
challenges and opportunities posed by the new world of
work, globalisation, automation, digitalisation and
artificial intelligence, coupled with our shift to a
carbon-neutral economy. We need to make sure that all
Europeans can benefit during these transitions,
especially when it comes to their jobs and livelihoods.
Our regional governments and administrations will be
instrumental in making sure that this shared purpose
becomes a reality."
Karl-Heinz Lambertz
, President of the European Committee of the Regions,
said: "Social rights must be at the centre of the EU's
future, protecting people whilst embracing
technological change. The EU must set out a clear plan
that ensures that the changes to our industries avoids
further polarising wages and increasing inequalities.
With the right regulation, platform work is one
opportunity to ensure everyone benefits from
digitalisation, leaving no one behind."
The two opinions focus on different aspects of
collaborative economy and platform work. The
first one
, prepared by Dimitrios Birmpas
(EL/PES), Municipal Councillor of Egaleo, stresses that
a comprehensive regulatory framework at EU level is
necessary to ensure the social protection and social
rights for platform workers against practices such as
deliberate misclassification of workers as
self-employed by employers seeking to avoid employment
regulations, fiscal obligations and collective
agreements.
"Platform work brings a number of opportunities to the
labour market because it is easily accessible and
flexible. However, appropriate measures have to be put
in place to ensure decent working conditions for
platform workers. Fundamental labour and social
regulations must be extended to the platform economy
and its workers, many of them young people. Given the
transnational nature of digital economy, a clear
European framework is necessary to address the many
regulatory challenges arising from platform work,
including how to determine the existence of an
employment relationship", argues the rapporteur, who
welcomes Commissioner Schmit's intention to address
labour conditions of platform workers and new forms of
precariousness.
The
second opinion
calls for the EU to define clearly the status of
collaborative economy platforms, according to the
precise degree of control exercised by the platform, in
order to clarify the question of which rules govern
their operations. Furthermore, as the collaborative
economy blurs the line between personal and
professional actors, the concept of "service provider"
should be clarified through EU-wide thresholds. The new
EU regulations should also require platforms to provide
public authorities with the necessary data to enforce
the rules and to ensure that collaborative economy
suppliers pay their fair share of taxes.
Rapporteur Peter Florianschütz
(AT/PES), Member of the Vienna Regional Parliament and
Vienna City Council, said: "We need clear, fair rules
in the EU for digital platforms. The laws must apply to
all, and the EU needs to take care of the interests of
its citizens in cities, communities and regions. At
present, we have more problems than solutions, ranging
from taxation issues, short-term leases in the housing
sector, as well as difficulties in the area of urban
mobility and in the public sphere. The EU must better
listen to its cities."
The opinion also expresses concerns on the
fragmentation of single market, as Member States,
regions and cities have set different rules for
collaborative economy market players. The CoR believes
that harmonised rules would promote the growth of
smaller collaborative economy businesses against
existing large, multinational platforms, which are
better able to cope with regulatory complexity.
Contact:
Lauri Ouvinen
Tel. +32 22822063
lauri.ouvinen@cor.europa.eu