New regulations on platform work: Fragmented responses to issues of work fragmentation

Abstract

There has been considerable discussion regarding the regulation of platform-mediated forms of work, yet less attention has been paid to the actual impact of regulations already enacted. In this brief analysis, I examine the cases of Spain and Chile, policy benchmarks in their respective regions. While Spain has introduced a presumption of employment, Chile’s legislation leaves this point open but implicitly encourages classifying workers as self-employed. Nevertheless, both countries have encountered significant complications in implementing these laws, stemming either from the narrow scope of the legislation or from corporate strategies aimed at circumventing it, leading to ever more fragmented and prolonged regulatory battles. Looking ahead, trade unions and workers’ organisations should engage more strategically in the regulatory conflict, considering the enforcement problems emerging and, more importantly, preventing regulation from concealing the radical potential of these movements against precarious work more generally.