The tide of employment law has continued to turn on the gig economy after the UK Supreme Court’s recent ruling that Deliveroo drivers are not considered workers but self-employed independent contractors.

This means people working in the gig economy are less likely to be able to access standard UK protections…

In 2021, for example, the Supreme Court decided Uber drivers were workers rather than self-employed contractors…

… any gig workers still want core social and employment protections such as paid leave, rest breaks, and the right to join a union, to be embedded in law. By finding that Deliveroo riders do not qualify for worker status, the courts have excluded them from these rights…

“We have for a long time advocated for self-employed workers to be provided with greater protection,” a spokesperson for Deliveroo says of the judgment…

Courier firm Evri (previously Hermes) is something of a pioneer in this regard…

many platforms offer various forms of privatised social and employment protections. And as this type of platform work continues to grow, privatised social and employment protection provision could grow along with it. The UK’s universal coverage model could be eroded by a variety of intermediary employment statuses with inconsistent levels of worker protections…