The European Union Council has adopted a new directive aimed at enhancing the working conditions of more than 28 million people employed by digital labour platforms across the EU.
The newly approved platform work directive mandates greater transparency in the use of algorithms for human resources management, ensuring that automated systems are overseen by qualified staff. It also grants workers the right to contest decisions made by algorithms.
Additionally, the directive seeks to clarify the employment status of platform workers, allowing them to claim any labour rights they are entitled to. Member states are required to establish a legal presumption of employment, which will be activated when certain indicators of control and direction are identified.
Following its adoption, the directive will be signed by both the Council and the European Parliament and will come into effect once published in the EU’s Official Journal. Member states will have two years to integrate the directive’s provisions into their national laws.
The European Commission first proposed the directive on 9 December 2021. After months of negotiations, employment and social affairs ministers reached an agreement on the Council’s approach in June 2023, with final negotiations concluded with the European Parliament in February 2024.