The regulation of online platform work: critical points beyond the iceberg point

Abstract

The great proliferation of «digital platforms» as an economic paradigm and of the flexible work inherent in digitization, until now, has been approached from the problems related to the legal nature of the service provision link, which, of course, is determining factor for setting employment and working conditions, as well as social protection, as has been raised by the Spanish riders law. In any case, the existence of another typology of online or web-based (micro)job platforms (crowdworkers or crowdemployment) that also raises notable problems and, although they have remained so far more invisible, with a high personal cost, is usually ignored and social (digital precariousness). Indeed, the purpose of this study is to outline some of the most conflictive aspects around the regulation of work in this sector of the digital economy. Therefore, it goes further, although without disregarding the legal nature of the employment link on digital platforms, demanding a more balanced regulation of employment and working conditions, promoting the standard of decent work and social protection enough. At this time, the «riders law» undoubtedly requires much more developments, legal and collective bargaining, than suggested by the closed social dialogue agreement. Hence, this study focuses on this new perspective to show the need, not only the convenience, of an intense involvement of the entire system of sources of these «new» (salaried) work relationships, beyond the current legal provision being very reductive.