Straddling Two Horses: Digital or Social Regulation? Behind, Within and Beyond the EU Platform Work Directive

Abstract

The adoption of the Platform Work Directive 2024/2831 marks the end of a seven-year-long, tense political debate on the regulation of plat form-mediated work in the EU. The Directive presents a complex piece of legislation, uniquely combining digital and social regulation. This article critically traces the evolution of its drafting process and con textualizes it against the architecture of the EU acquis. It offers an in depth analysis of the Directive’s provisions, focusing in particular on the presumption of employment and workers’ digital rights vis-à-vis automated systems, while also discussing transparency of platform work and its collective dimension. It is argued that, despite its sector-specificity, the Directive bears salient implications for EU law, especially for the regulation of the ever-spreading algorithmic management in work contexts, and the improvement of the working conditions in atypical work arrangements. The assessment unveils several open questions about the future of the regulation of work in the digital age.