19 Amendments of Abir AL-SAHLANI related to 2021/0414(COD)
Amendment 172 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 2
Recital 2
(2) This Directive respects fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (‘the Charter’). In particular, Article 31 of the Charter provides for the right of every worker to fair and just working conditions which respect his or her health, safety and dignity. Article 27 of the Charter protects the workers’ right to information and consultation within the undertaking. Article 8 of the Charter provides that everyone has the right to the protection of personal data concerning him or heras well as access to data which has been collected concerning him or her and the right to have it rectified. Article 12 of the Charter provides that everyone has the right to freedom of assembly and of association at all levels. Article 15 recognises that everyone has the right to engage in work and to pursue a freely chosen or accepted occupation. Article 16 of the Charter recognises the freedom to conduct a business.
Amendment 186 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) Digitalisation is changing the world of work, bringing workers and employers advantages such as creating new employment and business opportunities, improving productivity and enhancing flexibility as well as increasing consumer choice, while also carryposing some risks for employment and working conditions including lack of or difficult access to adequate social protection and a lack of occupational health and safety. Algorithm-based technologies, including automated monitoring and decision-making systems, have enabled the emergence and growth of digital labour platforms but can produce power imbalances and opacity about decision-making, as well as technology-enabled surveillance which could exacerbate discriminatory practices and entail risks for privacy, workers´ health and safety and human dignity.
Amendment 193 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4 a (new)
Recital 4 a (new)
(4a) New forms of digital interaction and new technologies in the world of work create opportunities for access to the labour market generally as well as in specific fields, in particular for people who traditionally lacked such access, including people with disabilities, young people and people with lower skill levels and this access should be fostered in the future in order to support a sustainable income and a decent standard of living for disadvantaged groups.
Amendment 194 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Platform work is performed by individuals through the digital infrastructure of digital labour platforms that provide a service to their customers. It is characterised by a high level of heterogeneity in the sectors covered and activities carried out, and the profiles of individuals performing platform work and types of digital labour platforms vary widely. By means of the algorithms, the digital labour platforms may control, to a lesser or greater extent – depending on their business model – the performance of the work, its remuneration and the relationship between their customers and the persons performing the work. Platform work can be performed exclusively online through electronic tools (‘online platform work’) or in a hybrid way combining an online communication process with a subsequent activity in the physical world (‘on-location platform work’). Many of the existing digital labour platforms are international business actors deploying their activities and business models in several Member States or across borders.
Amendment 208 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 6
Recital 6
(6) Platform work canreates employment, provideing opportunities for accessing the labour market more easily, gaining additional income through a secondary activity while also balancing caring responsibilities, education or vocational training or enjoying sommore flexibility in the organisation of working time. It can also facilitate efficiencies in the matching of supply and demand, optimisation of resources and increase consumer choice. At the same time, platform work brings challenges, as it can blur the boundaries between an employment relationship and self- employed activity, and the responsibilities of employers and workers. Misclassification of the employment status has consequences for the persons affected, as it is likely to restrict access to existing labour and social rights. It also leads to an uneven playing field with respect to businesses that classify their workers correctly, and it has implications for Member States’ industrial relations systems, their tax base and the coverage and sustainability of their social protection systems. While such challenges are broader than platform work, they are particularly acute and pressing in the platform economy.
Amendment 327 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 24
Recital 24
(24) When digital labour platforms control certain elements of the performance of work, they act like employers in an employment relationship. Direction and control, or legal subordination, is an essential element of the definition of an employment relationship in the Member States and in the case-law of the Court of Justice. Therefore contractual relationships in which digital labour platforms exert a certain level of control over certain elements of the performance of work should be deemed, by virtue of a legal presumption, to be an employment relationship between the platform and the person performing platform work through it. As a result, that person should be classified as a worker having all the rights and obligations in accordance with that status, as laid down in national and Union law, collective agreements and practice. The legal presumption should apply in all relevant administrative and legal proceedings and should benefitIt is important to stress that the legal presumption of an employment relationship must not lead to an automatic classification of all persons performing platform work as workers and must ensure theat persons performing platform work who are genuinely self-employed are able to remain so and can continue to access work through platforms. The legal presumption should apply in all relevant administrative and legal proceedings. Authorities in charge of verifying the compliance with or enforcing relevant legislation, such as labour inspectorates, social protection bodies or tax authorities, should also be able to rely on that presumption as well as persons performing platform work who dispute the classification of their employment status. Member States should put in place a national framework of measures, in accordance with their national legal and judicial systems, to reduce litigation and increase legal certainty.
Amendment 372 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 28
Recital 28
(28) The relationship between a person performing platform work and a digital labour platform may not meet the requirements of an employment relationship in accordance with the definition laid down in the law, collective agreements or practice in force of the respective Member State with consideration to the case-law of the Court of Justice, even though the digital labour platform controls the performance of work on a given aspect. Member States should ensure the possibility for any of the parties to rebut the legal presumption in legal or administrative proceedings or both by proving, on the basis of the aforementioned definition, that the relationship in question is not an employment relationship. TheA shift in the burden of proof to digital labour platforms is justified by the fact that they have a complete overview of all factual elements determining the relationship, in particular the algorithms through which they manage their operations. Legal proceedings and administrative proceedings initiated by the digital labour platforms in order to rebut the legal presumption should not have a suspensive effect on the application of the legal presumption. A successful rebuttal of the presumption in administrative proceedings should not preclude the application of the presumption in subsequent judicial proceedings. When the person performing platform work who is the subject of the presumption seeks to rebut the legal presumption, the digital labour platform should be required to assist that person, notably by providing all relevant information held by the platform in respect of that person. Member States should provide the necessary guidance for procedures to rebut the legal presumption.
Amendment 397 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 33
Recital 33
(33) Digital labour platforms should not be required to disclose the detailed functioning of their automated monitoring and decision-making systems, including algorithms, or other detailed data that contains commercial secrets or is protected by intellectual property rights in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/943. However, the result of those considerations should not be a refusal to provide all the information required by this Directive.
Amendment 406 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 37
Recital 37
(37) In that context, persons performing platform work should have the right to obtain an human review and explanation from the digital labour platform for a decision, the lack of decision or a set of decisions taken or supported by automated systems that significantly affect their working conditions. For that purpose the digital labour platform should provide the possibility for them to discuss and clarify the facts, circumstances and reasons for such decisions with a human contact person at the digital labour platform. In addition, digital labour platforms should provide the person performing platform work with a written statement of reasons for any decision to restrict, suspend or terminate access to work assignments, to restrict or suspend that person’s account, to refuse the remuneration for work performed by that person, or affecting his or her contractual status, as such decisions are likely to have significant negative effects on persons performing platform work, in particular their potential earnings. A decision to terminate the account of a person performing platform work may be supported but never taken by an automated decision-making system unless necessary to safeguard the health and safety of the recipients of the service. Such decisions should be notified to the person prior to the decision coming into effect. Where the explanation or reasons obtained are not satisfactory or where persons performing platform work consider their rights infringed, they should also have the right to request the digital labour platform to review the decision and to obtain a substantiated reply within a reasonable period of time. Where such decisions infringe those persons’ rights, such as labour rights or the right to non- discrimination, the digital labour platform should rectify such decisions without delay or, where that is not possible, provide adequate compensation.
Amendment 437 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 45
Recital 45
(45) Platform work is characterised by the lack of a common workplace where workers can get to know each other and communicate with each other and with their representatives, also in view of defending their interests towards the employer. In some areas prevalent in platform work, such as digital remote services or design work, many Member States lack established workers’ organisations or trade unions. Persons performing platform work should be free to organise, choose representatives and be taken into account in social dialogue and collective bargaining processes, regardless of their employment status. Persons performing platform work can also be exposed to the increased risk of violence, including gender-based violence and harassment. It is therefore necessary to create digital communication and reporting channels, in line with the digital labour platforms’ work organisation, where persons performing platform work can exchange with each other and be contacted by their representatives and report incidents of violence or harassment. Digital labour platforms should create such communication channels within their digital infrastructure or through similarly effective means, while respecting the protection of personal data and refraining from accessing or monitoring those communications.
Amendment 471 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
In accordance with Article 10, rights laid down in this Directive pertaining to the protection of natural persons in relation to the processing of personal data in the context of algorithmic management also apply to every person performing platform work in the Union who does not have an employment contract or employment relationship. This Directive shall be without prejudice to the full respect of the autonomy of social partners, as well as their right to negotiate and conclude collective agreements.
Amendment 608 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – introductory part
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – introductory part
2. Controlling the performance of work within the meaning of paragraph 1 shall be understood as fulfilling at least two majority of the following:
Amendment 619 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point a
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point a
(a) effectivelyde facto determining, or setting upper limits for the level of remuneration;
Amendment 626 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point b
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point b
(b) requiring the person performing platform work to respect specific binding rules with regard to appearance, conduct towards the recipient of the service or performance of the work beyond what is required by law or necessary to safeguard the health and safety of the recipients of the service or to ensure the essential functioning of the service;
Amendment 639 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point c
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point c
(c) closely supervising the performance of work or thoroughly verifying the quality of the results of the work including by electronic means beyond what is required by law or necessary to safeguard the health and safety of the recipients of the service or to ensure the essential functioning of the service;
Amendment 647 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point d
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point d
(d) effectivelyde facto restricting the freedom, including through sanctions, to organise one’s work, in particular the discretion to choose one’s working hours or periods of absence, to accept or to refuse tasks, including from other digital platforms or to use subcontractors or substitutes;
Amendment 658 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point e
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point e
(e) effectivelyde facto restricting the possibility to build a client base or to perform work for any third party.
Amendment 667 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 3 – introductory part
Article 4 – paragraph 3 – introductory part
3. Member States shall take supporting measures to ensure the effective implementation of the legal presumption referred to in paragraph 1 while taking into account the impact on entrepreneurs and start-ups, avoiding capturing the genuine self-employed and supporting the conditions for innovation and the sustainable growth of digital labour platforms. In particular they shall:
Amendment 755 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 3
Article 5 – paragraph 3
Where the person performing the platform work argues that the contractual relationship in question is not an employment relationship as defined by the law, collective agreements or practice in force in the Member State in question, with consideration to the case-law of the Court of Justice, the digital labour platform shall be required to assist the proper resolution of the proceedings, notably by providing all relevant information held by it. Member States shall provide the necessary guidance for procedures to rebut the legal presumption.