Platform workers as a distinct legal class? MOM seeks views
DELIVERYMEN and ride-hailing drivers who use online matching platforms such as Grab, Foodpanda and Lalamove for work here could be designated as a new worker category under new laws being drafted by the authorities.
The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said on Monday (Aug 14) that it is seeking public views on this, noting that creating a class of “platform workers” distinct from employees and self-employed persons would make it easier for them to understand the legal protections and support schemes that they are eligible for.
In addition, MOM said it wants to get feedback on whether platform operators here should be legally required to take “reasonably practicable measures” to ensure the safety and health of platform workers they contract with.
This includes setting reasonable expectations for how much time is needed to fulfil a job so that workers do not need to rush, and rolling out mechanisms for the public to report unsafe driving or riding to the respective platform operators.
The public consultation, which is being conducted online, will also gather views on how a “platform operator” should be defined under the new law, and who should be responsible for protecting platform workers who are engaged as subcontractors.
The consultation exercise, from Aug 14 until 6 pm on Sept 4, comes as the government prepares to table new legislation in Parliament to implement a set of new policies that will grant platform workers employee-like levels of work-injury compensation insurance and Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions.
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The more than 88,000 platform workers here are also set to get a bigger voice, after the government last month accepted recommendations which will pave the way for representative bodies that function like trade unions to champion platform workers’ interests.
These new measures are expected to kick in from the second half of 2024.
In a consultation paper published on Monday, MOM said the new protections will be given only to platform workers who provide ride-hailing and delivery services.
In 2021, the government had identified these workers as a vulnerable group; an advisory committee comprising representatives from the government, labour movement, industry and academia was set up to study ways to strengthen protections for them.
But the advisory committee had given the government the responsibility of determining the precise definitions for the terms “platform operator” and “platform worker” during implementation.
The committee recommended that these definitions be flexible enough to take into account the differences between the delivery and ride-hailing sectors, and be applicable to new sectors in the future if required.
MOM said it took into account what the committee had said, and studied how other jurisdictions, such as the European Union, defined platform work.
From this, MOM is now proposing that platform operators here be defined by three “prongs”.
The first defines platform operators as those that collect data to automate the matching of customers with workers, for instance by assigning a particular ride-hailing driver to make a trip based on his or her estimated time of arrival, MOM said.
The second prong limits the scope to cover only operators that provide such chargeable matching services as a business model.
The third prong further defines platform operators as those that exert control over how their service is performed, for instance by limiting the ability of workers to choose their hours of work or negotiate a fee.
MOM proposes to adopt the definition of “platform worker” as it is used in the United Kingdom, where an intermediate class of “workers” enjoys some but not all the protections and entitlements of employees.
Those who wish to give their views on these issues must do so in written form by 6 pm on Sept 4. THE STRAITS TIMES
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