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Resolution 2312 (2019)
The societal impact of the platform economy
1. The platform economy has emerged
as a brand-new facet of the globalised economy, with increasing numbers
of Europeans being affected – as entrepreneurs, workers or consumers.
Digital platforms enable a more open marketplace where goods, services
and information are exchanged between individuals (peer-to-peer)
and business actors (professionals and firms) for profit, on a cost-sharing
basis, or even for free. However, the platform phenomenon has grown
mostly on the margins of regulations applicable to the mainstream
economy, which causes various distortions at national and local
levels. This phenomenon is set to expand further in an exponential
manner over the coming years, with a significant impact on society
at large.
2. The players in the platform economy have been accused of breaching
the level playing field and existing laws concerning consumer protection,
social rights of workers and taxation, at both national and European levels.
States are therefore compelled to assess the new challenges and
regulatory needs in order to provide adequate responses to this
new economic reality. The Parliamentary Assembly considers that
lawmakers in Europe should seek a balanced approach in this context
so that public interests prevail over more narrow commercial considerations,
without choking off innovation, entrepreneurship, new work and consumption patterns,
as well as the development opportunities that go with them.
3. The Assembly notes the diversity of views in the European
arena in assessing the potential of digital platforms to create
or preserve quality jobs, optimise the use of existing resources
and increase overall well-being in society. It concurs with the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) viewpoint
suggesting that the regulatory policies debate should focus on sector-specific
issues (such as in the case of transport and accommodation platforms)
and on cross-cutting issues relating to labour rights and social protection,
taxation, consumer protection (including data protection) and competition.
4. The Assembly regrets the lack of data on the specific aspects
and trends in the development of the platform economy to inform
evidence-based policy making and welcomes the efforts of the OECD
and the European Commission to consider ways to obtain more accurate
data and hence a more comprehensive picture of the rapidly evolving
platform economy. While the “platformisation” of work is an opportunity
to formalise the informal work of semi-professional service providers
and to integrate informal exchanges into the mainstream economy
and social systems, there is also a risk of the opposite – an expansion
of the informal economy, if platforms’ activities are not properly
regulated and not duly accounted for.
5. The Assembly is moreover concerned that the “platformisation”
of work may contribute to the spread of increasingly precarious
forms of non-standard work, and notes that, in many countries, labour
law does not apply, or applies only partially, to those considered
as self-employed. As a result, many such workers are not entitled
to a minimum wage, annual leave or sickness allowances. In this
context, the Assembly believes that guidance from the European Committee
of Social Rights (ECSR) on the application of the European Social Charter
(ETS No. 35 and ETS No. 163) in relation to platform workers would
be highly relevant. It therefore urges the ECSR to examine the emerging
policy and practice issues in relation to the platform economy,
in particular as regards labour rights, social security systems
and related protection.
6. Currently, the employment status of platform workers – and
the rights and obligations that go with it – is not quite clear
across Europe. The existing regulatory frameworks are applied to
digital platform workers, mainly distinguishing between employees
and self-employed workers (“freelancers”); platforms tend to classify their
workers as self-employed. Some countries have additional subcategories
of these two statuses, and there is an ongoing debate on the need
to consider introducing a third type of status specifically for
platform workers. In this context, the Assembly notes that legal
uncertainty over platform workers’ status has already given rise to
multiple cases of litigation, with court judgments varying from
country to country and with courts arriving at different conclusions
in respect of workers involved with the same platform or in the
same sector.
7. In relation to platform-enabled work, the Assembly recommends
that national regulators, including parliaments, of member States
should:
7.1. review national legislation
applicable to the activities of digital platforms and their workers,
assess its relevance in the new circumstances and identify areas
that require additional regulation with a view to preserving, or
strengthening, the supremacy of the public interest, fair competition
and the basic level of platform workers’ rights and social protection,
as set out in the European Social Charter;
7.2. when screening national laws, consider distinguishing
between “work on-demand via internet applications” for delivering
physical services locally, and “crowdwork online” for outsourcing
tasks (such as accounting, designing or translation) to a worldwide
pool of virtual workers;
7.3. assess how existing European and national legal standards
can be best employed in the global context to settle cross-border
issues arising from the operation of multinational platforms, notably
as regards taxation and tax collection, consumer protection and
the applicability of foreign legislation to crowdwork;
7.4. based on evidence showing that working for one platform
is generally not sufficient to be the main source of income for
the workers concerned (akin to “zero-hours” contracts), and considering
that for some people platform work remains their only source of
income, prohibit exclusivity clauses of online platforms, so as
to enable individuals to also work for other enterprises and supplement
their income;
7.5. tackle new psychosocial risks due to platforms’ “work-on-demand”
philosophy and rating systems (such as the consequences of constant
real-time monitoring and assessment of worker performance, relative
isolation, the double insecurity of employment and income, the assignment
of tasks at very short notice and with tight deadlines, the permanent
state of standby at the expense of rest time and work-life balance,
possible discrimination and pressure to deliver despite falling
ill) through national workplace health and safety regulation and
policies;
7.6. ensure that adequate registration, certification and control
mechanisms are in place with regard to platform services in order
to protect consumer rights, personal data, health and safety, and
to secure public order and safety;
7.7. clarify taxation obligations for platforms, their workers
and users, and provide electronic channels to facilitate income
declaration and compliance with tax rules so that taxes are paid
where the economic activity takes place;
7.8. strengthen protections and controls with regard to the
risks of possible exploitation online and through illegal subcontracting
of work via platforms, in order to avoid the use of child labour
in third countries and of non-registered migrants on their territory;
7.9. seek greater transparency in the operation of platforms
and additional regulatory measures – either internal (self-regulation)
or external (imposed by law) – if necessary, so as to offset the
bias, barriers and discrimination which certain users or service
providers may face in the digital context, just as they do in the
traditional economy (for example, the gender pay gap or rigid rules
with regard to working hours);
7.10. study the impact of new working patterns on gender equality
and provide State-funded possibilities for platform workers to develop
or acquire skills with a view to fostering their employability and
equal opportunities.
8. The Assembly also supports the legislative initiatives of
the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council
of the European Union aimed at ensuring transparent and predictable
working conditions in the European Union. It invites the Council
of Europe member States to consider them as guidance towards providing
an adequate co-ordinated regulatory response to the challenges of
the platform economy at national level.