As we reported in our November edition, entirely dedicated to platform economy, the legal status of platform economy workers is widely debated in many jurisdiction, and it is more and more discussed also in the light of the set of proposals on working conditions in platform work published by the European Commision last December.

In spite of the numerous jurisprudential pronouncements on the subject, which were already mentioned in a previous edition, no Belgian Labour Tribunal had yet settled the matter before.

The Labour Auditorate lodged the case before the Labour Tribunal of Brussels, to request their requalification as employees, after having investigated for more than two years the working conditions of Deliveroo couriers. 

Several couriers joined the case, as they wanted to be considered employees of the platform, demanding the application of the labour law provisions (application of wage scales, reimbursement of expenses, compliance with the collective bargaining agreements concluded in the “Transport and Logistics” Joint Committees, etc).

The case was rejected, as the Tribunal concluded that there is no reason to reclassify the employment relationship between Deliveroo and the couriers to an employment contract.

The decision was based on the following considerations:

• the will of the parties (according to the contractual terms of their collaboration) was to provide independent services and to conclude an agreement in this regard;
• couriers were free to organise their working time (and the system of pre-booked time slots is not a restriction);
• couriers were free to disconnect from the platform whenever they wish and they were not obliged to accept deliveries as long as they are not connected.
• Based on the declarations of the couriers, there was no evidence that the platform exercised concrete hierarchical control: basically, the Deliveroo riders did not receive precise instructions from Deliveroo, they did not have to justify their absences, nor did Deliveroo have a power to sanction the riders. 

This decision is relevant and it can set a precedent in the discussion of the nature of the employment relationship between riders and platforms. In this regard, it is important to underline that the decision was based on the specific circumstances of the case, which allowed the Court to overcome the presumption of subordination also laid down in the European Commission's proposal.

Therefore, it can be considered that, even if the proposal for a European Directive were to be approved and transposed into national law as it stands, the final decision on the nature of the relationship must always be established by examining the concrete way in which the relationship is carried out.