Freelance work through digital platforms in the EU gives millions of professionals – such as graphic designers, child carers, delivery couriers, taxi drivers and many others – the ability to build fulfilling livelihoods on their own terms: freelancers can choose when, where and how they work, and be their own bosses. 

The way we choose to work and live is now under threat by the European Parliament’s current approach in the Platform Work Directive. We want better protection and benefits compatible with our way of working. Instead, if the EU Parliament gets its way, we'll face uncertainty, the risk of forced reclassification into employment structures we don't want, taking away the flexibility and freedom we actively choose.

We demand the European Parliament listen and respect the voice of those who are directly impacted by this legislation:

Give us the power to negotiate: Make it easier for us freelancers to negotiate – either individually or as a group – with platforms on our working conditions, including compensation, social protections, and benefits.

Protect our flexibility: Ensure our right to freely choose when to work, without any notice and without any schedules imposed upon us.

Protect our independence: Ensure our freedom to select which tasks we choose to accept or reject, without being directed by a boss.

Protect our entrepreneurship: Provide certainty to operate as self-employed and to build our business by providing services to different partners, including competing platforms.

Let us preserve the freedom and flexibility to #BeYourOwnBoss and ensure a fair and inclusive future for all platform workers! Sign the petition today at https://chng.it/rmC94yP7W4 and share it with your friends and colleagues.

Want to get involved? Send an email to glen@freetradeeuropa.eu and share your story why you believe it’s important to protect freelance workers in the EU. 

The EU institutions recognise that the Platform Economy has grown exponentially in recent years. Their figures highlight that revenues have increasing from an estimated €3 billion to around €14 billion between 2016 and 2020, and the number of platform workers in Europe is expected to reach 43 million by 2025.

Context

Against this background there is a push to classify platform workers and freelancers - without consulting them - and give them a traditional employment status, despite the fact that the majority of them do not want this.

The European Commission published a proposal for legislation COM (2021) 762 to this end back in December 2021. This proposal included a list of five criteria covering level of remuneration; rules on appearance and conduct; performance of work and quality standards; choice of working hours; and possibility to work for third parties. If two of these criteria were met, then an individual would be deemed to be an employee under the terms of the proposal.

Subsequently the Employment & Social Affairs Committee of the European Parliament proposed amendments to the text of the proposed legislation and made it worse by removing the criteria and imposing a presumption of employment on all platform workers: thus robbing them of the right to be a freelancer or self-employed. Furthermore, the European Parliament voted to impose tighter restrictions on the use of algorithms by platforms. Their position was agreed in February 2023.

Current status

In June 2023 representatives of European governments (the Council) agreed a text on the Platform Economy Worker Rights dossier after fraught and lengthy discussions. Belgium, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Spain wanted stronger safeguards for workers included in the text and a firm legal presumption of employment. Other countries - led by France - wanted clearer derogations to the presumption of employment. The agreed text is a compromise between these opposing views which opens the door to derogations from the presumption of employment for companies that follow national rules. 

Under the terms of the Council position, workers will be legally presumed to be employees of a digital platform (as opposed to self-employed) if their relationship with the platform fulfills at least three of the seven criteria set out in the directive. In cases where the legal presumption applies, it will be up to the digital platform to demonstrate that no employment relationship exists according to national law and practice. More provisions on algorithmic transparency have also been introduced which means that human monitoring of automated monitoring and decision-making systems will be brought in.

Next steps

In terms of next steps, EU Member States need to open talks with the European Commission and European Parliament to decide how the final text will look. These trialogues - as they are called - will begin in October 2023 and we need to renew our efforts at this time to make decision-makers listen to the voice of freelancers and platform workers who want flexibility, freedom and choice.

Need for action now

In order for politicians and decision-makers to listen to the voice of freelancers, we have instigated this EU petition. We will hand over the signatures to legislators in Brussels ahead of the commencement of inter-institutional discussions in October.