Beijing lectures Alibaba, Tencent, other Big Tech firms on gig workers’ rights despite progress from last year
- Four government agencies met with 11 internet platforms to tell them to do more to help gig workers like food delivery personnel and ride-hailing drivers
- Beijing issued new guidelines last year seeking to protect workers in ‘new employment forms’ and addressing issues such as income and work safety
At a meeting held by four government agencies, the companies were instructed to “have political, ideological and actionable consciousness of” gig workers, according to a statement from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MHRSS) released on Friday. The statement noted progress the companies have made in implementing new rules on worker rights, but concluded that they could do more.
Protecting China’s gig workers could cost Big Tech a small fortune
In addition to the MHRSS, the Ministry of Transport, State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and All-China Federation of Trade Unions were involved in what the statement called “administrative instruction”.
The platforms shall “deeply understand the workers’ needs, increase the supervision of employment partners’ protection of their rights, keep improving algorithms and labour rules on the platforms and improve the institutional mechanism” for protecting their rights and interests, the authorities said.
By the end of 2020, China had about 84 million gig workers, according to the MHRSS, a number that may have been impacted by the slowing economy during the Covid-19 pandemic. The issue of gig workers’ rights is especially pressing during the week-long Lunar New Year holiday, which starts on February 1, as workers look to collect their full earnings in order to make it home for the biggest family gathering of the year.