1. Simon Joyce s.c.joyce@herts.ac.uk EFFAT Briefing Brussels 4 May 2016 Digitalisation and the growth of online work platforms: issues for trade unions

2. Digital work becoming familiar… Crowdsourcing Workforce on demand Cloudsourcing Human cloud Sharing economy Digital labour Prosumption Co-creation Digital commons Peer-to-peer Playbour Mesh Economy Gig economy Liquid labour Platform capitalism

3. Convergence of several existing trends Use of online platforms for managing and monitoring work Spread of ‘just in time’ working – e.g. zero hours contracts, ‘workforce as service’ Standardisation and simplification of tasks – ‘taskification’ Digitisation of tasks Use of data from online activities for target setting and performance monitoring – including customer ratings Expectation that workers are available 24/7 Multi-location working Migration of freelance agencies online Migration from telephone directories to online searching Outsourcing

4. No single employment model – some key variables

5. Unresolved issues – the platform Legal status and responsibilities of online platforms. What are they Markets? Service providers? Advertising directories? Employment agencies? Who is the employer? The platform? The client? Another intermediary? Is there an employer? (Self-employed/Freelancer/Entrepreneur?) Which national jurisdiction applies? Location of platform? Location of client? Location of worker?

6. Unresolved issues – workers’ rights General employment rights – linked to employment status Equalities, employment protections, unfair dismissal Intellectual property rights in relation to digital content Right to prompt, fair payment for work completed Right to challenge customer ratings Right of free assembly – including self-employed workers Collective bargaining, information and consultation Health and safety regulation, including working hours Maternity rights Child labour Applicability of European and national regulations

7. Unresolved issues – workers, consumers, public Relationship between worker protection, consumer protection and public safety. Which agencies should be responsible? Insurance Professional liability Data protection Consumer rights and protection

8. Broader societal issues Breakdown of employed–unemployed model –Need for new employment models? Incompatibilities between labour market and social protection systems –Need for new social protection models? Taxation –Offshoring and avoidance Financial governance –Prevention of money laundering Accountability to local communities and economies –Possibility of establishing locally-based work-sharing platforms?

9. How big is digital/online work? And where is it going? Supply and demand – estimate current size and potential for growth How to measure something for which there is no clear terminology? Collect information about all the other types of online activities with which they could be confused –Selling personal possessions / used goods – ebay, Preloved –Buying & selling items for profit – ebay, personal website –Renting accommodation – Airbnb, Owners Direct –Employment agency – Jobsite, Manpower –Employer’s app / text / email Filter, then ask for further information –Type of work, frequency, earnings Online survey: Ipsos MORI, FEPS, UNI Europa

10. Estimates of crowd-workforce

11. Types of crowdwork sought

12. Frequency of crowdwork

13. Proportion of income from crowdwork

14. Age of crowdworkers Germany

15. Age of crowdworkers Sweden

16. Age of crowdworkers UK

17. Type of work carried out Germany

18. Personal income of crowdworkers Germany

19. Personal income of crowdworkers Sweden

20. Personal income of crowdworkers UK

21. Personal income of crowdwork customers DE

22. Personal income of crowdwork customers SE

23. Personal income of crowdwork customers UK

24. Crowdwork and crowdworkers: Preliminary overview Crowdworkers are young Crowdworkers have another source of income Crowdworkers are usually main earner (DE 70%, SE 89%, UK 81%) Crowdworkers are low paid Crowdwork customers are low paid Overall picture appears at this stage to be one of low-paid, mainly young workers, piecing together an income from various sources, in order to make a living And often also using crowdworkers as a source of cheap services Digital work and crowdwork set to grow

25. For more information go to FEPS website