Couriers prefer flexibility. But this is threatened by new European legislation

The modern economy is strongly influenced and shaped by digital platforms, which are becoming a key element of the Czech economy as well. As part of the preparation for the new European legislation, the discussion on the first and working conditions of couriers and partner taxi services will therefore begin. With the growing influence of platforms, there is also the challenge of how to develop the protection of the first collaborators of individual platforms with the requirements for flexibility, which this method has long offered and is the main motivator for this type of work.

In a survey by IPSOS, conducted among couriers and taxi service partner companies, around eighty percent of the respondents preferred the flexibility and duration of the business offered by the current cooperation model.

This flexibility corresponds to current trends in the labor market and is necessary for maintaining the competitiveness of the Czech economy, said Tom Prouza, president of the Trade and Tourism Association of the Czech Republic. According to him, this means that even the workers of the so-called gig economy do not care about bureaucracy. That’s why 54 percent of them want to expand and partially transport beer during their studies and want to supplement their income from their main work.

If drivers and partners of taxi service companies were to be classified as employees under the European legislation being prepared, digital platforms would have to fulfill other related regulatory requirements. These could significantly limit operational flexibility and lead not only to limited business activities, but also to long-term entanglements.

Adaptation for the esk market

Member of Parliament Jana Bakov for ODS draws attention to the necessity of an adaptable approach in the Czech legislative process. We want to allow individuals to freely choose between an employment relationship and a free OSV. People should not be forced to do these elections against their own will as under socialism. Flexibility of working hours is a modern trend and a priority for many employers. It is particularly important that if the digital platforms could not effectively provide services to the warehouse in times of low demand, it would lead to burning and delaying of their services, which we should not ask for, said Bakov.

The European legislation in the two-member state of the EU provides space for implementation, which protects the first worker without further limiting the flexibility that digital platforms offer. We must ensure that our implementation of the directive protects the first courier and partner taxi services, but at the same time does not represent an excessive administrative burden for the platforms and unnecessary bureaucracy for the state apartments. We need to find a reasonable balance between flexibility and security and to support the offer of job opportunities, comments the chairman of the subcommittee for the business environment, Ji Hjek from hnut STAN.

Jan Bauer, deputy for the ODS and mayor of the economy committee, shared a similar view. Digital platforms are an important part of the economic growth of the Czech Republic. It is a priority to support business models that are in line with modern labor market requirements. We also want to support innovation and flexibility in our work environment, added Bauer.

According to the data of the change survey of the company IPSOS, cooperation with the digital platform for couriers and partnership ideas of taxi services is often a short-term and supplementary form of part-time business. For a substantial number of couriers and partner people, platforms represent the only option at the moment.

During the debates in the House of Representatives, it was heard that the owners and partners of the taxi service idea should maintain their daily flexibility. It follows from the data that if they were forced to go to an employment relationship without any flexibility, they would rather quit. However, according to Kurr’s vision, the legislation being prepared should allow the platform to provide the cooperating OSV with advantages, for example, once in a while.