The Platform Work Directive

Member States have until December 2026 to transpose the EU's Platform Work Directive into national law. Our Employment Law & Benefits team provide an update on transposition progress to date and a step-by-step guide for immediate action.

What you need to know

• EU's Platform Work Directive: We are approaching the first anniversary of the EU Platform Work Directive, which must be transposed before 2 December 2026.
• Directive highlights: The Directive includes a number of obligations for employers regarding employment classification, increasing transparency, regulating algorithm management and data processing in platform work.
• Transposition progress: The Department of Enterprise Tourism and Employment has confirmed that assessment has begun on the Directive’s transposition requirements. It has launched a consultation and survey to further this aim.
• Actions for employers: Ireland’s transposition of the Directive is still in its infancy. Therefore, the requirements of employers under national implementing legislation are still unknown. Employers who wish to be compliance ready, however, can tentatively action several key initiatives.

The EU's Platform Work Directive is aimed at improving working conditions and protection of personal data in platform work by:

• Clarifying the employment status of those who carry out platform work
• Improving transparency in platform work
• Regulating data processing in platform work, and
• Regulating algorithmic management in platform work

In a previous article, we set out the key aspects of the Directive that employers should be aware of.

Our Employments Law & Benefits team examines the Government’s progress to date and provides a compliance guide for employers who seek to proactively de-risk their work models.

Key definitions

Digital labour platform is defined in the Directive as a natural (i.e. individual) or legal person (e.g. company) providing a service, which:

• Is provided, at least in part, at a distance by electronic means, e.g. a website or app.
• Is provided at the request of a recipient of the service, e.g. a customer.
• Involves, as a necessary and essential component, the organisation of work performed by individuals in return for payment, regardless of whether the work is performed online or in a certain location. This can entail the use of riders/drivers to deliver food for a food delivery app.
• Involves the use of automated monitoring systems or automated decision-making systems.

Automated monitoring systems means systems used for or which support monitoring, supervising or evaluating, by electronic means. They assess the work of persons performing platform work or the activities carried out within the work environment, including by collecting personal data.

Automated decision-making systems means systems which are used to take or support by electronic means, decisions that significantly affect persons performing platform work. These include the working conditions of platform workers. Decisions may relate to their:

• Recruitment
• Access to and the organisation of their work assignments
• Earnings, including the pricing of individual assignments
• Safety and health
• Working time
• Access to training
• Promotion or its equivalent, and
• Contractual status including the restriction, suspension or termination of their account.

Intermediary means a natural or legal person that, for the purpose of making platform work available to or through a digital labour platform:

• Establishes a contractual relationship with the digital labour platform and a contractual relationship with the person performing platform work, or
• Is in a subcontracting chain between the digital labour platform and the person performing the platform work

Platform work is work organised through a digital labour platform. It is performed in the European Union by an individual on the basis of a contractual relationship between a digital labour platform, like a food delivery app, or an intermediary or subcontracting company, and the individual. This arrangement is irrespective of whether there is a contractual relationship between the individual or an intermediary and the recipient of the service, i.e. the customer.

Platform workers are defined in the Directive as persons performing platform work who have, or are deemed to have, an employment contract, as opposed to a contract for services. They are also persons who are deemed to have an employment relationship as defined by the law, collective agreements or practice in force in the Member States, with consideration to the case law of the Court of Justice. The five-step test set down by the Supreme Court in The Revenue Commissioners v Karshan (Midlands) Ltd t/a Domino’s Pizza[1] is instructive in this regard. For more information on the Karshan case, read our previous article on the topic

It is clear from these definitions that a person may perform platform work but not be considered a platform worker. Certain aspects of the Directive, for example the restrictions on forms of data processing, will apply to individuals who carry out platform work, even if that person cannot be said to be a platform worker.

Highlights of the Directive

We recommend that you read our article on the Platform Workers Directive, available here for additional detail and context.

At a high level, the highlights of the Directive include:

1. Presumption of employment

The Directive introduces a rebuttable presumption of an employment relationship where facts exist which indicate “direction and control”, according to national law, collective agreements and EU case law. The five-step test in Karshan should inform this from an Irish law perspective.

2. Algorithmic management

The Directive establishes limitations on the processing of personal data by means of automated monitoring systems and also automated decision-making systems. Collectively, these are referred to as “automated systems”. They apply to all persons performing platform work, not just platform workers, from the start of their recruitment or selection.

Digital labour platforms may not by means of automated monitoring systems:

• Process any personal data on the emotional or psychological state of a person performing platform work
• Process private conversations, including exchanges with other persons performing platform work and the representatives of persons performing platform work
• Collect any personal data of a person performing platform work while that person is not offering or performing platform work
• Process personal data to predict the exercise of fundamental rights, including:
  • The freedom of association
  • The right of collective bargaining and action, or
  • The right to information and consultation as laid down in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
• Process any personal data to infer their:
  • Racial or ethnic origin
  • Migration status
  • Political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs
  • Disability, state of health, including chronic disease or HIV status
  • Emotional or psychological state
  • Trade union membership
  • Sex life or sexual orientation
• Process any biometric data, as defined under the GDPR, of a person performing platform work to establish that person’s identity by comparing that data to stored biometric data of natural persons in a database

The processing of personal data by means of automated systems is a type of processing which is likely to result in a high risk to the rights and freedoms of natural persons within the meaning of Article 35 of the GDPR. When carrying out a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) in accordance with that provision concerning the impact of processing personal data by automated systems on persons performing platform work, the views of those persons and their representatives should be sought.

3. Human oversight of automated decisions

The Directive states that the decision to restrict, suspend or terminate the contractual relationship or the account of a person performing platform work or any other equivalent decision cannot be taken by an automated system. It shall be taken by a human being.

Digital labour platforms must, with the involvement of workers’ representatives, carry out regular evaluations of the impact of individual decisions taken or supported by automated systems on persons performing platform work. These include decisions relating to their working conditions and equal treatment at work. Those who are performing the overview and evaluation must have the competence, training and authority necessary to exercise that function, including for overriding automated decisions. Those persons shall enjoy protection from dismissal, disciplinary measures and other adverse treatment where they exercise their functions.

Where human oversight detects a high risk of discrimination in the use of automated monitoring or decision-making systems, the digital labour platform must take appropriate action. If it is found that a decision made or supported by such a system has infringed the rights of a person performing platform work, the platform must take necessary steps to prevent similar occurrences, such as modifying the system or discontinuing its use. Information generated on foot of an evaluation should be transmitted to platform workers’ representatives and should be made available to persons performing platform work and the national competent authorities on request.

4. Transparency

Under the Directive, digital labour platforms will be required to inform persons performing platform work, platform workers’ representatives and, on request, national competent authorities, of the use, aim, parameters and functioning of automated systems.

5. Explanations

Persons performing platform work will have the right to obtain an explanation from the digital labour platform for decisions taken or supported by an automated system without undue delay. The parameters of this right are expanded on in the Directive.

6. Safety and health

Digital labour platforms will need to evaluate the risks that automated systems may pose to the safety and health of persons performing platform work. This evaluation should pay particular attention to potential risks of work-related accidents, as well as psychosocial and ergonomic risks. The safeguards of those systems ought to be interrogated, and appropriate preventative and protective measures will need to be introduced. Digital labour platforms shall not use automated systems in a manner that puts undue pressure on platform workers, or otherwise puts at risk the safety and physical and mental health of platform workers. In order to protect platform workers from violence and harassment, digital labour platforms must take preventative measures, including providing for effective reporting channels.

7. Information and consultation

Workers’ representatives are required to be informed and consulted where a digital labour platform introduces an automated system, or substantial changes in the use of an automated system. Competent authorities and platform workers’ representatives should also have access to certain information about the digital labour platform’s workforce and the intermediaries with which the digital labour platform has a contractual relationship.

8. Reporting

Digital labour platforms are obliged to declare work performed by platform workers to the designated competent authority in Ireland.

Legislative progress to date

The Department of Enterprise Tourism and Employment has confirmed that assessment has begun on the Directive’s transposition requirements. It is expected that the transposition deadline of 2 December 2026 will be met.

To further this aim, the Department has launched a consultation, seeking the views of stakeholders of the Directive. Views were requested no later than 3 November 2025.

The Department is also conducting a survey online at the following address.

Action points for employers

Ireland’s transposition of the Directive is still in its infancy and we have no draft legislation yet. Organisations who wish to be compliance ready, however, can action several key initiatives over the next 12 months to bring them in line with the minimum standards set down by the Directive. These include:

1. Conduct an internal audit of all contractual relationships: An audit should be undertaken of all contractual relationships to ascertain whether sufficient “direction and control” are present to trigger the presumption of employment.
2. Audit automated monitoring and decision-making systems: Map and audit all automated monitoring and decision-making systems currently in use that affect persons who carry out platform work.
3. Review data collection and processing practices: It is important to ensure no prohibited data is being processed by automated systems and conduct a data protection impact assessment for all automated systems used.
4. Collection process: Establish a process to regularly collect, update and report required information on work carried out by platform workers to the designated national authority.
5. Establish health and safety frameworks: Assess the logistics and processes needed to evaluate the risks of automated systems and their safeguards. Create preventative and protective measures and explore the provision of a reporting channel for workers’ safety.

Comment

The EU Platform Workers Directive aims to improve working conditions of people performing work through digital labour platforms. With a transposition date of 2 December 2026, employers should take proactive measures now with expert legal advice, to ensure legal compliance.

To discuss the implications of the Directive on your business, please contact the Employment Law & Benefits team.

The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal or other advice.

[1] [2023] IESC 24.