It's one year today until the Platform Work Directive has to be transposed in all 27 EU member-states. While the focus of the Directive has understandably been on improving the working conditions of those in the platform economy today, the number of workers at-risk of Uber-style business models is far greater than those who currently make up the gig economy.
Using an index of 10 indicators of vulnerability to Uberisation which combine consideration of the value proposition for capital (such as the potential for 'network effects') and common characteristics which tend to be associated with shifts to precarious work models (such as outsourcing and privatisation), we identify six industries which indicate high vulnerability to Uberisation. At least five reds is the threshold for high vulnerability (see table below). |
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It's not to say these are the only industries which have high vulnerability to Uberisation (the study is not systematic of the whole economy, we invite others to apply the methodology to their sector of interest), but these are the ones which we have identified as industries where digital labour platforms could potentially become the dominant model soon.
Here, we will focus only on the data annotation industry (also known as 'clickwork' or 'microwork'). These are the 'invisible' workers behind artificial intelligence systems, testing, training and fixing AI. There have been data annotators working on a gig economy basis since the mid-2000s (think Amazon Mechanical Turk), so this is not something that's new, but the industry has been transformed in recent years by the explosion in generative AI.
To cut a long story short, generative AI needs a lot of data annotators and, as AI systems become more complex, data annotators with sector-specific knowledge are increasingly required to provide human feedback data, comparing two AI answers and being able to say which one is better and why. This change is re-shaping the geography of the data annotation industry, with an increasing demand for 'high-skilled' workers in the global north.
As costs fall and generative AI products become more sector-specific, the potential for workers to be displaced by AI and end up as data annotators for an AI product is a real one. At that point, workers who were previously in secure, well-paid work are at risk of being exposed to the highly precarious data annotation industry led by companies like Remotasks and even Uber's 'AI Solutions' division. The link between generative AI and Uberisation is data annotation work.
Since AI's influence could ultimately spread across every sector, all European workers have an interest in preventing Uberisation. The report ends by looking at what measures workers should take to safeguard their jobs against Uberisation, most importantly by negotiating what new technology is rolled-out at the workplace and how it is rolled-out. We also develop a strategy to 'de-Uberise' jobs which are already subject to digital labour platform business models.
A strong, worker-friendly transposition of the Platform Work Directive will be important for both preventing Uberisation and de-Uberisation. Employment rights immediately reduce the intensity of algorithmic management, and are a starting point for building human, accountable relationships between workers and bosses.
It's crucially important that we see the Platform Work Directive in this broader context. It's a mistake to think about it as a regulation only for food delivery couriers and ridehail drivers. Transposed well, this can be a tool to safeguard the future of work for all workers in Europe.
Ben Wray, Gig Economy Project co-ordinator |
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The Gig Economy Project is hosted by the BRAVE NEW EUROPE website. BNE is a 100% reader-funded media providing critical analysis on European politics and economics. To keep resistance media alive in Europe, donate here. |
Gig Economy news round-up |
IRISH DRIVERS CONTINUE STRIKES AGAINST UBER: Irish ridehail drivers have continued to take action for the third week running against Uber over the company's shift to an 'upfront fares' pay policy at the start of November. Dublin city centre was reportedly brought "to a standstill" on Thursday [27 November], with further actions planned over December. The Irish Independent reported that hundreds of drivers have also switched off Uber's app, with 18,000 drivers in Ireland and one-third of those working for Uber. More drivers are expected to switch-off over the festive season and pick up customers off the street using the traditional meter fare. The resistance to Uber's shift away from the meter fare to upfront fares, where prices are dictated by the algorithm with a variable commission taken by Uber, has pushed government to act, with Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien asking the National Transport Authority (NTA) to examine the complaints of drivers. Drivers say upfront fares is in breach of NTA policy. Derek O'Keefe from Taxi Drivers Ireland said: "We won't back down. The livelihood of taxi drivers depends on it. We won’t allow [Uber] to run the Irish industry into the ground." An Uber spokesperson responded by claiming that drivers were "responding really positively" to the change in the pay system. Read more here. REDUNDANCIES 'SOCIAL PLAN' AGREED BETWEEN LIEFERANDO AND WORKS' COUNCIL IN GERMANY: Lieferando (Just Eat) has finally agreed to a 'social plan' for riders being made redundant by the company. Lieferando announced in July that it was sacking 2,000 riders across the country, a number which has since been reduced to 1,500 due to many riders taking voluntary redundancy. The layoffs now affect 15 per cent of its workforce, with the company introducing a 100% sub-contractor model in a quarter of the cities it operates in to replace the fired riders. The social plan includes that all those made redundant will receive a month's salary for each year of service at the company, plus €600 for further training as severance pay. Lieferando, the biggest food delivery platform in Germany, was taken over by South African tech firm Prosus in February. Tobias Horoschko, a member of the national Lieferando Works' Council, criticised the company, stating that they never showed an interest in negotiating or providing information to workers until the last moment. Horoschko also criticised Lieferando for firing riders rather than transferring them to the sub-contracted firms, stating that: "There are vacancies in many areas, and many colleagues would have been willing to relocate." The company continues to reject the NGG union's call for a collective agreement, describing it as "unrealistic". Lennard Neubauer, the Lieferando head in Germany, claimed that the changes had already slashed delivery times and did not rule out further outsourcing in the future. Read more here. UBER CRITICISED FOR PAY CUT IN PORTUGAL: The Portuguese Association of Transporters in Unmarked Vehicles (APTAD) has criticised Uber for slashing pay rates for its ride hail drivers in the country, only one week after an agreement with a union which supposedly included "minimum income guarantees". APTAD president Ivo Fernandes said they had sent a letter to Uber Portugal expressing its “absolute indignation at the new unilateral reduction in fares”. Fernandes added that “with the kilometre dropping to €0.52 and the minute remaining at the unacceptable €0.08" the pay cut is “irresponsible, unjustifiable, and reveals a total disregard for the drivers and operators who ensure the service daily.” Fernandes questioned Uber's agreement with another union, Sindel, just last week, as Uber was supposed to “guaranteeing that it would start paying according to the minimum wage.” Uber Portugal denied that drivers pay had been cut, stating that: “Each day of the week, time of day, and region of the country is different and reviewed independently, with the aim of maximising drivers' income". Read more here. UK INTRODUCES 'TAXI TAX' ON RIDE-HAIL PLATFORMS: Trips booked through ride-hail platforms like Uber and Bolt in the UK will now be charged the full 20% Value Added Tax (VAT), in a change announced by the UK Government on Thursday [27 November]. What has been dubbed the 'taxi tax' is really the closing of a loophole, whereby ride-hail platforms have only paid VAT on their profits not on the full trip fare. Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that loophole would be closed from 2 January 2026, with the change expected to raise £700 million for the government coffers by 2027-2028. The change does not affect traditional taxi operators. Criticising the move, Uber’s UK boss Andrew Brem said: “The government’s action to change the rules will mean higher prices for passengers in London and less work for drivers when people are already struggling with the cost of living.” Bolt's UK head Kimberly Hurd said the change was "punitive" and stated that it had motivated the Estonian-headquartered company to establish a 'Bolt Flex' service outside of London whereby drivers and passengers can negotiate their own fares. James Farrar, former Uber driver and director of Worker Info Exchange, defended the taxi tax, stating: "The taxi tax isn't a tax on taxis, its a tax on private hire operators like Uber." Read more here. UBER DRIVERS STRIKE IN NORWAY OVER "UNDIGNIFIED CONDITIONS": Around 50 Uber drivers in the Norwegian city of Bergen went on strike on 20 November, against what drivers have called "undignified conditions". The drivers say the 25% commission Uber take is too high and that the company does not differentiate in fare prices between different times of the day. "We are just the beginning of this uprising," Mustafa Almustafa, an Uber driver in Bergen, said ahead of the strike. "I see from some discussion groups that we have that there will be protests in Oslo as well eventually". Arman Nezhad, a former Uber driver who now works for a taxi company, said when Uber entered the Norwegian market they took just a 5% commission, a rate that has increased five times over since then, calling the US company a "taxi cancer where it is impossible to survive". Eirik Svensson of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions said they would speak to the drivers and support them. "We believe that drivers can demand employment at Uber, and that a collective agreement can be negotiated with demands for sick pay and pension accrual, to name a few," Svensson added. Read more here.
Have we missed something important? You can help keep us informed about what's going in the gig economy in Europe by e-mailing GEP@BraveNewEurope.com. |
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The Counter-app podcast series explores how app-based workers can counter the power of their algorithmic bosses. Each episode is based on new research for the ETUC on platform work, with the first episode on 'Negotiating the Algorithm'. Listen here. |
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Contact project co-ordinator Ben Wray at GEP@BraveNewEurope.com with news, events, ideas, feedback...whatever you think might be useful.
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