Labour Protection of Platform Workers in China: Legal Innovations and Emerging Trends

Abstract At present, there are as many as tens of millions of digital platform workers in China, and their number is growing rapidly. However, the protection of platform workers’ rights still faces many challenges. In recent years, China’s judicial and administrative authorities and trade unions have made many efforts to strengthen labour protection for platform workers. Many innovative measures have been introduced, which strive to find a balance between the development of the platform economy on the one hand and worker protection on the other. The introduction of a number of significant administrative and legislative measures in 2021 suggests that the protection of platform workers occupies a more important position than before. Courts and labour arbitration institutions have introduced new factors into consideration in the determination of employment relationship in some cases, although they in general still apply the traditional definition and methods of determination of the employment relationship. Administrative organs have put forward the new concept of the ‘incomplete labour relationship’ (Bu Wanquan Fuhe Queli Laodong Guanxi Qingxing, referring to the situation in which the parties do not completely meet the conditions for the formation of a labour relationship), as part of administrative guidance to platform companies in the form of ‘guiding opinions’. The Trade Union Law has been amended in a timely way to clarify that platform workers can join and establish trade unions. In addition, pilot projects have been launched in some areas to provide occupational injury protection to platform workers. The main feature of the labour protection of platform workers in China is that the administrative organs have played a leading role. At present, the main challenge is to improve the imperfect legislation. The way forward is to formulate special laws to further clarify the basic rights of platform workers, including algorithm-related rights, and to improve the rules on the determining of employment status in platform work, so as to enhance legal certainty and ensure effective protection for platform workers.