EU lawmakers, countries agree on a bill on gig workers’ rights

European Union lawmakers provisionally agreed on Wednesday on a bill aimed at giving workers at online companies such as Uber and Deliveroo employee benefits, which if adopted would be a global first.
The new rules will prevent workers from being wrongfully classified as self-employed, and therefore not eligible for benefits, by introducing “presumption of employment”.
Meeting two out of five indicators of control, or direction, will trigger the assumption the worker is employed by the company.
“Currently, at least 5.5 million persons performing platform work may be wrongly classified as self-employed … and are missing out on important labour and social protection rights,” the European Parliament said in a statement.
The rules were originally announced in late 2021 and if adopted will be a global first. They are part of a raft of legislation intended to ensure a level playing field between online and traditional businesses.