Platform work arrangements are often defended as an expression of technological progress with the potential to enable people to work as self-employed individuals, often without any supervision or control. However, by now, it is well-documented that platform work not only shares important features of flexibility and precariousness with other casual work arrangements that are on the rise around the world, but it also entails the risk of excluding a significant portion of workers from the protection of fundamental collective labour rights, including their coverage from collective agreements. In this important and timely book, the author shows how a human rights-based approach (HRBA) towards collective labour rights can bridge this protection gap. Such an approach identifies workers, regardless of their employment status, as rights-holders that are entitled to rights, like the right to collective bargaining, derived from international human rights and labour rights instruments. Fully describing the phenomenon of platform work as well as presenting a detailed global overview of responses related to the challenges stemming from platform work arrangements, the research, inter alia, covers aspects, such as the following: problems, challenges, and questions related to platform work arrangements, and how those are linked to broader labour market trends; platform work’s deeper foundational implications for labour law; legal developments related to the regulation of platform work with an assessment of their limits when it comes to collective labour rights, also recognised as human rights; various ways in which platform workers and other atypical workers have managed to exercise their collective labour rights; and promising indications of closer cooperation between organised labour and workers in non-standard forms of employment. The analysis draws on international human rights and labour rights treaties and conventions, domestic legislation and regulations, rulings from international and national courts, and interpretative and authoritative sources including the relevant legal literature. The book manifests and responds to a genuine need for in-depth research with respect to the protection of the human rights of platform workers with an analytical framework that will ensure their adequate protection. Its crucial observations will be welcomed by practitioners in labour law, human rights law, and competition law, as well as by academics, human resources professionals, and labour and employment policymakers.

Collective Bargaining for Self-Employed Workers in Europe Approaches to Reconcile Competition Law and Labour Rights Founding Editor: Roger Blanpain General Editor: Frank Hendrickx Edited by Bernd Waas & Christina Hießl The increase in the number of self-employed workers, partially in response to the advent of the platform economy, has raised the spectre of horizontal price-fixing by self-employed members of a profession. This perception, however, is at odds with international labour standards, under which self-employed persons should also be able to conclude collective agreements to some extent. It is now commonplace for companies to offer various forms of non-standard employment that shift risk from the labour engager to the labour provider – which may increase the likelihood of those workers to fall outside the legal concept of ‘employee’ and because of that affects their legal protection. Legal practitioners may then face a dilemma: what may be required under labour law may be prohibited under antitrust law. In the first comprehensive analysis of these intensely debated issues, the authors argue that there is an urgent need to address the current legal puzzle, including through regulatory measures. This must include, in particular, the existing regulation at the level of the European Union (EU), which dominates competition law in the Member States. The book combines an analysis of the supranational framework by experts in labour law as well as competition law with in-depth country reports from Member States of the EU in which regulations and/or practices of collective bargaining for the self-employed exist. Among the many issues discussed in this book are the following: collective bargaining and international labour rights; self-employed individuals and the concept of undertaking in EU competition law; the concept of ‘social dumping’; the importance of the case law of the European Court of Justice; the concept of ‘vulnerability’; competition authorities’ enforcement strategies and priorities; the concept of ‘false self-employed’; and the possible introduction of exemptions, presumptions, safe harbours, or smart regulation solutions in competition law. The book gives an insight into the legal situation in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden. These reports discuss the current practice of collective bargaining and how the current law is reflected in the academic discourse on the right of self-employed people to bargain collectively. This important book, in its presentation of legally sound and effective ways to shape the application of the right to bargain collectively that are attuned to the business and technological realities of the twenty-first century, promotes an understanding of the consequences for current law and practice and offers a basis for a discussion of regulatory measures addressing existing challenges. Practitioners of labour law and competition law, national competition authorities, and other interested parties will benefit from the detailed analysis and extensive findings.

Inquisitive and diverse, this innovative Research Handbook explores the ways in which human rights apply to people at work, through national constitutional provisions, judicial decisions and the application of rights expressed in supranational instruments. Key topics include evaluation of the role of the ILO in developing and promoting internationally recognized labour rights, and the examination of the meaning of the obligation of business to respect human rights, considering the evolution from international soft law to incorporation in codes of conduct and the emerging requirement of due diligence.

This is the conference book for the XIV European Regional Congress of the International Society for Labour and Social Security Law, dedicated to the interactions between social law and other areas of law. In recent years, labour law and social security law have been subject to various reforms and developments. Social law is however not an isolated domain but rather interacts with other fields, often even functioning as a guide or giving direction to those lost at sea. In other words: serving as a lighthouse. The key aspect addressed in this book is the existence of a connection between social law sensu stricto (labour law and social security law) and other areas of law. Pursuing an inter- and multidisciplinary approach, it gathers contributions on topical and challenging issues in four broad areas: 1. Basic and fundamental principles of European social law 2. The future in the light of the past 3. The impact of regionalisation 4. Enforcement in social law In turn, various developments can be identified in connection with these topics: the emergence of social criminal law is creating new overlaps between social and criminal law; the growing number of administrative law sanctions offers new insights into and connections between social security law and administrative law; the increasing similarity of employment in the public and private sectors raises questions about the applicability of administrative law in labour law relations; the relation between the ECHR and the articles of the Constitution opens up new perspectives on the constitutional interpretation of freedoms and on the interaction between human rights, constitutional law and social law; and lastly, there is a growing influence of EU law and international treaty law (concerning trade) on social law. Can we, by looking at these developments, draw certain conclusions at a different and innovative level? The contributions were selected by an international working group of distinguished scholars from across Europe.

This unique book offers a comprehensive systematization and overview of the EU´s emerging ‘acquis’ and practice of Collective Labour Law. Although the core aspects of Collective Labour Law lie outside the EU’s competence to regulate, the laws and industrial relations systems of Member States are undoubtedly influenced by the EU, and the involvement of Social Partners, i.e. representatives of employers and workers, is essential for many aspects of EU law and policy.

The complete guide to EU competition law, combining key primary sources with expert author commentary.The most comprehensive resource for students on EU competition law; extracts from key cases, academic works, and legislation are paired with incisive critique and commentary from an expert author teamSelling Points--· Full, definitive coverage of every aspect of EU competition law - the complete guide tothe subject· Students are guided through the most important extracts from key cases, articles, and statutory material, all carefully selected and explained by this experienced authorteam· 'Central Issues' at the start of each chapter clearly identify key themes and principles discussed, to help readers navigate the material effectively· Extensive footnoting and further reading suggestions provide a thorough guide to the literature, giving students a starting point for their own research and readingNew to this edition--· Full analysis of important developments in competition law and policysince 2019, including relevant case-law, new EU legislation and notices and competition law goals;· A comprehensive discussion of the evolving law and policy governing market definition and vertical,horizontal cooperation and sustainability agreements;· A new chapter on competition law in the digital economy, incorporating a discussion of the Digital Markets Act.

It cannot be denied that in recent decades, for many if not most people, work has become unstable and insecure, with serious risk and few benefits for workers. As this reality spills over into political and social life, it is crucial to interrogate the transformations affecting employment relations, shape research agendas, and influence the policies of national and international institutions. This single volume brings together thirty-nine scholars (both academics and experienced industrial relations actors) in the fields of employment relations and labour law in a forthright discussion of new approaches, theories, and methods aimed at ameliorating the world of work. Focusing on why and how work is changing, how collective actors deal with it, and the future of work from different disciplinary angles and at an international level, the contributors describe and analyse such issues and topics as the following: new forms of social protection and representation; differences in the power relations of workers and political dynamics; balancing protection of workers’ dignity and promotion of productivity; intersection of information technology and workplace regulation; how the gig economy undermines legal protections; role of professional and trade associations; workplace conflict management; lay judges in labour courts; undeclared work in the informal sector of the labour market; work incapacity and disability; (in)coherence of the work-related case law of the European Court of Justice; and business restructurings. Derived from a major conference held in Leuven in September 2018, the book offers an in-depth understanding of the changing world of work, its main transformations, and the challenges posed to classical employment relations theories and methods as well as to labour law. With its wide range of insights, analysis, and reflection, this unique contribution to the study of industrial relations offers an authoritative reference guide to scholars, policymakers, trade unions and business associations, human resources professionals, and practitioners who need to deal with the future of work challenges.