The effective application of the right to collective bargaining for self-employed (platform) workers: ‘Not such an easy task’

Abstract

This article contends that the effective application of the right to collective bargaining for self-employed (platform) workers can be particularly challenging due to the current structure of existing systems of industrial relations, even when we set aside restrictions stemming from competition law. These limitations persist despite the strong legal basis and broad consensus under international law that the right to collective bargaining constitutes a human right with universal application. Several international labour and human rights instruments, along with the findings and wording of their respective supervisory bodies, illustrate that the right to collective bargaining should have a broad personal scope of application, regardless of workers’ employment status. However, in practice, achieving such widespread application is not an easy task. As this article points out, the inability of current industrial relations systems to fully allow self-employed workers to exercise their right to collective bargaining necessitates a discussion on the future of industrial relations.