Day after day we see them on the streets riding bicycles, motorcycles, cars and distributing food. The labor rights of platform workers - food delivery companies "Wolt", "Glovo", "Mister D" and other companies - are not specifically defined by law, so they do not exercise all labor rights as full-time employees. The Labor Law defines an employee as a natural person who is employed by an employer. However, platform workers usually do not directly contract with companies, but are hired through intermediary agencies.
In most cases, these workers have non-standard contracts, Branka Anđelković, co-founder and program director of the Center for Public Policy Research, explains to "Vreme". "These are, for example, contracts on temporary and occasional jobs, part-time contracts and the like. This type of engagement is part of work outside the employment relationship and is a common practice", Branka Anđelković points out and adds that, when viewed in the long term, it has implications for both social and pension rights of workers.
What opportunities do platforms have to ensure fair working conditions for their employees? Branka Anđelković says that there are two possibilities: one is to start employing delivery workers themselves, and if that is not possible, to force the companies they cooperate with and which, in fact, hire these workers, to respect all the rights they prescribe.
Stefan Todić, a legal expert from UGS "Nezavisnost", told "Vreme" that in this case the problem is not only the application of the Labor Law, but also other laws. "When we talk about contracts and contractual relations, although the employment contract is defined by the Labor Law, contract law is also defined by the Law on Obligations", Todić points out.
STARTING WORK FROM THE MINUS
Dušan Papić, who worked as a food delivery man on the "Wolt" platform, tells "Vreme" that at the beginning he was 10.000 dinars short. With that money, he bought a jacket and a bag from "Wolt", which were necessary for his work. He explains that those 10.000 minuses are immediately on the application, and that the obligation is to do it first, and only then can the earnings begin. Taking equipment is not a matter of goodwill, but an obligation. As Papić explains, it is not possible to buy a used one somewhere, for less money, but it is necessary to get a new one from them.
Branka Anđelković states that this equipment is actually taken on a "reverse" basis, that is, when the worker one day stops working for the platform and returns the equipment, he will get his money back. However, she asks why the workers are in a position to take the equipment they pay for on the reverse side. "The whole story should be simple, which is that the equipment for the workers is free", concludes our interlocutor.
But this is not the only cost to workers. He also pays for any rental of bicycles, cars, car fuel and the like. Papić states that he had to allocate 17.000 dinars per month for an electric bicycle.
Branka Anđelković says: "Every month, workers have to allocate money for the maintenance of either a bicycle, a motorcycle or a car. Gasoline is quite expensive, so workers generally choose two-wheelers. They drive the car only in winter when they have to". He further adds that in addition to the car, there is also the problem of parking when the delivery is taken over, so problems with the municipal police follow from that.
SALARY AND WORKING CONDITIONS
For working on platforms, people single out good earnings and flexible working hours as an advantage. However, it does not necessarily mean that it is always so.
Dušan Papić says that there are workers who earned 200.000 per month. However, as he explains, the problem is that everyone is paid per order, so there are days when he goes out and turns on the app, but there is no work, so what happens is that people rush to do as much as possible, which puts them at risk of some injuries and other problems. .
"People work up to 16 hours a day, so they are sleepless at work," Papić points out.
According to him, when there is work, it is possible to earn 1000 dinars per hour, which is about five or six orders, and which again depends on the distance and the algorithm on the application that calculates it.
"On average, the salary is better than the minimum wage", concludes Dušan Papić.
Branka Anđelković states that incomes are solid, but for those who work a lot and with minimal rights. "If these workers had a classic employment contract, there would be much less money left for them. But with that, for example, they would have the right to paid vacation, paid leave from work, the right to compensation for transportation costs, the right to financial compensation in case of unemployment, and the like."
In addition to money, Anđelković cites flexibility as something that sets platform workers apart. On the other hand, what kind of flexibility is there if you work 60 hours a week to make good money?
But certainly these two motives are key. Anđelković also states that there are also examples, which are certainly much fewer, in which some other reasons play an important role in choosing such a job.
"One of my interlocutors, who has been in this business for a long time, says that she loves the freedom she feels while riding a motorcycle. She is a biker and chose a job where she can use a motorcycle. For some other deliverymen, delivery by bike is, for example, a sporting activity, but such people are in the minority", indicates our interlocutor.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER COUNTRIES
The European Union has proposed a Directive on the improvement of working conditions performed through digital platforms in order to improve the social and economic position of platform workers. Branka Anđelković states that attention has been focused on the EU Directive on improving the status of workers on platforms for a long time.
"And just when the European Council and the European Parliament finally approved the directive in mid-December, the proposal was suddenly rejected at a meeting of EU members when they were only supposed to confirm the decision already made. This means a further postponement of the adoption of the Directive, which may have to wait until the end of the European elections in June 2024", emphasizes Branka Anđelković. She adds that when it is adopted, the Directive will become a legal instrument for the member states of the European Union after two years of harmonization at the national level. "It is possible that, in fact, the platforms will have to change their business model in the EU because of it, and this will certainly have implications for the work of the platforms outside the European Union as well," he concludes.
Stefan Todić cites the example of Spain, which passed the Law on delivery drivers and thereby regulated their rights in a way: "In theory, that law exists, but it did not solve all the issues of those drivers and workers on the platforms. There are still problems, but it's better than it was."
In Austria, for example, a collective union agreement was signed. "The Austrian union gathered workers in the service sector, and they signed a collective agreement that improved their rights and enabled them to organize a union," adds Todić.
Finally, when asked about the advantages of this job, i.e. good salary and flexibility, Dušan Papić says that he would not be able to earn enough while studying. "Generally, it is not worth doing that job as a side job, three or four hours a day, but as a full-time job of eight to 10 hours a day, in order to earn some good money," concluded Papić.
