Platform workers deserve better protection – and Singapore is leading the way: Opinion

Source: Business Times
Article Date: 20 Sep 2024

Beyond newly passed legislative changes, consumers have a role to play.

From ride-hailing to deliveries, platform workers now form about 3 per cent of Singapore’s workforce, numbering about 70,000 in 2023. Such work promises flexibility and entrepreneurial freedom, yet often leaves workers without the basic rights and protection that traditional employees have.

This raises a fundamental question: What role should governments and society play in ensuring decent working conditions for platform workers?

Platform work offers the allure of independence – workers can set their own schedules, work from anywhere and control their earning potential. In times of economic uncertainty, these attributes offer a lifeline to many.

However, this independence is often an illusion. Most platform workers are classified as independent contractors, not employees, and their work is governed by algorithms that dictate everything from job availability to pay.

Workers – many from vulnerable or marginalised communities – have little control over key aspects of their work and limited access to basic safeguards. This creates a precarious situation where financial hardship is only one accident or setback away.

Recognising these vulnerabilities, the Ministry of Manpower set up the Advisory Committee on Platform Workers in 2021. The committee was tasked with addressing three areas: ensuring adequate financial protection in case of work injuries; improving housing and retirement adequacy; and enhancing representation.

After extensive consultations with platform operators, unions and workers, the committee’s recommendations were accepted by the government in November 2022.

Taking responsibility

The responsibility for regulating the platform economy rests with governments, which must update labour laws to reflect the realities of the digital age.

Many countries are grappling with this. Across Europe, several nations have introduced reforms to ensure that platform workers receive fair wages and essential protection without sacrificing the flexibility that draws many to these jobs.

Singapore has taken a step in the same direction with the Platform Workers Act, passed in Parliament this month. It implements the Advisory Committee’s recommendations, and introduces one of the world’s first frameworks that treats platform workers as a distinct category with tailored protection.

The Act aims to build a fairer, safer platform economy. Rooted in Singapore’s unique model of tripartism – which brings together platform operators, workers and other stakeholders – it creates a more balanced ecosystem that benefits all parties.

For platform workers, the new protection is a significant advancement. Increased Central Provident Fund contributions will improve their housing and retirement security. To protect the most vulnerable, the government has announced financial support such that take-home pay is minimally affected in the short term.

With coverage under the Work Injury Compensation Act, platform workers will no longer be left unprotected in case of injury. And such workers will now have formal representation, giving them a stronger voice to address workplace concerns and advocate for fair treatment.

Platform operators will see long-term benefits too, as providing such protection should improve industrial relations. The Act also ensures that liability for work injury compensation is fairly distributed among operators, proportionate to their risk exposure.

The role of consumers

But the responsibility of protecting platform workers does not fall solely on the government. It requires a whole-of-society effort. How we as consumers engage with platform workers will set the tone for labour relations in a highly digital economy.

We interact with platform workers every day – yet these interactions are often transactional, overlooking the real human labour behind them. A shift in mindset is needed.

Encouragingly, surveys show that many consumers are willing to pay slightly more for platform services, knowing that their contributions support fairer working conditions for the people who keep the gig economy running.

Supporting fair pay, tipping generously and backing policies that safeguard workers’ rights are all ways in which consumers can help shift the balance of power.

However, customers should not bear the full brunt of the costs of workers’ protection.

In non-platform sectors, employers absorb such costs as part of operating expenses. Similarly, platform operators should not pass on these costs fully – and if they do so, they risk losing customers to more affordable alternatives.

As technology evolves, platform work will become an even larger part of the labour landscape. The Platform Workers Act strikes a balance between progress and protection, ensuring that the platform economy benefits everyone: from workers on the frontlines to the consumers and businesses that depend on them.

The writer is the chairperson of the Advisory Committee on Platform Workers