Regulating Gig Work: Decent Labour Standards in a World of On-demand Work(Law and Change)

Digital revolution demands new approaches to regulating work. The ‘Uberisation’ of work is not, in reality, a new phenomenon. It reintroduces the practices of ‘on-demand’ engagement of labour, common prior to the development of continuing employment. What is new, however, is the capacity of digital technology to engage labour in ways that avoid characterisation as employment according to the legal tests developed in the 20th century. This book tackles the challenge of ensuring that the emerging tribes of ‘gig’ workers in labour markets across the globe are afforded decent standards of work. This book discusses how to provide decent conditions and safe working standards for on-demand workers engaged through digital platforms. It interrogates the rise of gig work, and the legal strategies that might be engaged to deal with the risk that on-demand work will fall and remain outside of employment protections. It draws on observations of practices across the globe but focusses particularly on regulatory solutions developed in Australia. The book will be a useful reference to policy making and legal reforms to address vulnerabilities of gig workers.

Table of Contents:
Preface viii 1 Context and history 1 Introduction 1 Common features of platform-mediated work 3 Labour law avoidance 4 ‘Employment’ 5 Algorithmic control 8 ‘Multi-apping’ 10 Regulating for safe, fair, and dignified work 12 2 A global perspective 16 Introduction 16 Could development of further ILO standards promote gig worker rights? 17 OECD 20 The centrality of domestic regulation 20 Europe 21 European Union 21 Employment status under the proposed EU Directive 21 Regulation of algorithmic management 23 Dispute resolution and enforcement 23 Individual European countries 24 United Kingdom 25 United States 26 New Zealand 27 Conclusion 28 3 Overview of workers’ essential needs and forms of legal protection 29 Introduction 29 ‘Deeming’ provisions 32 ‘Third way’ statutory definitions 35 Special regulatory schemes for contractors 38 New South Wales industrial laws 39 Operation of the Chapter 6 regime 40 Victorian owner driver scheme 41 Western Australian owner driver scheme 42 Queensland 43 Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal 45 Franchising code of conduct 46 Unfair contracts review 49 Conclusion 50 4 Pay and safety 51 Introduction 51 Why substantive labour standards should apply to gig workers 52 Gig workers’ experience of low pay and poor safety 53 Pay and safety link evident in gig work 56 The current regulation and its shortcomings 57 WHS laws 57 Workers’ compensation 58 The appropriate methods of producing a socially beneficial remuneration standard 60 Proposed Reforms 62 Conclusion 64 5 Procedural rights: Freedom of association and job security standards 65 Introduction 65 The function and benefits of collective bargaining 66 Why gig workers deserve collective bargaining rights 67 Establishing collective bargaining for gig workers – possibilities and obstacles 67 Realising substantive collective bargaining rights for gig workers 70 Protection of job security 70 Dispute resolution 73 Conclusion 76 6 Exclusion from jurisdiction as a regulatory strategy 78 Introduction 78 Rideshare as a ‘disruptor’ 78 Bans across the globe 79 United States 80 Europe 80 United Kingdom 81 Scandinavia 82 India 82 Other countries 82 Bans in historical context: Previous restrictions on the free flow of capital 82 Digital labour platform responses to bans 84 The cloud of words 84 Enter markets and keep operating: Business as usual despite bans 85 Using violence against rideshare drivers to gain support 86 The emergency ‘kill’ switch 86 Big spending on lobbying 87 Overall effectiveness of the bans 87 ‘Regulatory entrepreneurship’ business model and bans 90 Beyond law – compliance measures to combat disruption and improve bans policy 91 Conclusion 92 7 Organisational forms to enhance worker control and ownership 94 Democracy at work for platform workers 94 Worker participation in corporations 96 Cooperative enterprises 97 RideAustin – the not-for-profit 97 ATX – taxi driver cooperative 99 Governance of cooperatives 99 Worker ownership trusts 101 Conclusion 102 8 Concluding thoughts 104 Regulating on-demand work, everywhere 104 Beyond ‘employment’ 105 Future-proofing labour regulation 106 Supervision 107 Bibliography 109 Index 121

About the Author :
Michael Rawling, University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Law. Joellen Riley Munton, University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Law, and Professor Emerita, The University of Sydney.