More rights for employees: agreement on EU rules for Lieferando and Co.
According to the new regulations, those affected have the same legal status as regular employees as soon as two of five criteria are met. These include the wage level, fixed rules for work clothing, electronic monitoring by the employer, limited freedom of choice regarding working hours and little or no opportunity to work for other employers.
If two of the criteria are met, employees themselves, trade unions or authorities can determine a so-called acceptance of employment. Companies can lodge an objection, but must prove that an employee is actually self-employed.
The European Parliament's chief negotiator, Elisabetta Gualmini (Social Democrats), spoke of a "revolutionary agreement". The regulation creates "better rights for the worst protected workers in the world". CDU MEP Dennis Radtke explained that the EU is "hereby declaring war on bogus self-employment and distortion of competition".
The law also prohibits digital platforms from processing personal data such as the religious beliefs of their employees and private conversations with colleagues. Decisions on dismissals may no longer be made by algorithms. Companies should also report to the authorities and trade unions how many people they employ independently.
More than 30 million people in the EU work for platform companies, and this figure could rise to more than 40 million by 2025. The EU Commission estimates that around 5.5 million of them are falsely self-employed. Parliament and member states still have to formally approve the new regulations.
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Source: www.stern.de
