European Union: Reached new Parliament and Council provisional agreement on improving working conditions in digital platform work including worker monitoring regulation

On 8 February 2024, the European Parliament and the Council reached a new provisional agreement on a proposal for a directive on improving working conditions in digital platform work, which would include regulations on the use of worker data and algorithms by digital platforms. The previous agreement reached on 13 December 2023 was renegotiated by the Belgian presidency after the last presidency determined that a majority in Coreper could not be reached. The proposal would prohibit digital platforms from processing the personal data of platform workers which is not directly and necessarily connected to their work, such as personal beliefs and private exchanges with colleagues. Further, digital platforms would need to inform workers of the use of automated decision-making and monitoring systems, explaining the parameters within which these systems make use of workers' data, and specifically, it mandates that platforms inform their workers on how a worker's behaviour affects decisions taken by automated systems.