The Uber Eats Decision: Australia’s FWC Full Bench misses the chance to see through the gig economy’s sophistry

“On 21 April 2020, a Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission ruled that an Uber Eats delivery driver (Amita Gupta) could not bring an unfair dismissal claim as she …

Thoughts on the Foodora Fiasco: Have Labour Laws Been Violated?

“There’s a familiar pattern emerging.  Foodora announces its entry into a new country with a flourish, runs into legal problems that question its sketchy business model, and then shuts down claiming …

Tips and Benefits: Lessons from Israeli Law for the COVID Era

This post looks at the on-going issues faced by restaurant workers’ tips versus wages, and how the current pandemic exacerbates this issue. Among the many issues that tipping causes, one …

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Dispatch 22: Polish Legislative Reform Tests a More Principled Approach to Collective Rights of Self-Employed Workers

Until 2019 Poland had one of the highest levels of workers performing personal work outside employment relationship who were at the same time fully excluded from the right to form …

What do we know about the extent of stand downs, their legal basis, and challenging unlawful stand downs?

Over the last month, we have become all-too-familiar with a very old concept in employment law: stand downs. Government restrictions to contain COVID-19 have had a devastating economic impact, leading …

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Will fundamental workers’ rights also fall victim to COVID-19?

“The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed in stark terms the fact that our economies are built on the systematic exploitation of workers, whether at our local grocery store or in distant farms, factories …

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What Now for Wage Theft? Enforcement of Employment Rights and Entitlements in a Time of Crisis

“At the start of 2020, not a day would go by where a story of ‘wage theft’ did not appear in the major news outlets. There were multiple government inquiries …

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Responding to Forced Labour in the US Healthcare System

“Late last month, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency (CBP) revoked its ban on imports from a Malaysian rubber gloves manufacturer accused of engaging in forced labour. The CBP had previously …

Coronavirus and directing employees to work from home: examining an employer’s duty of care

“In the present wake of the Coronavirus outbreak, many employees have been directed by their employers to work from home. The question I pose here is: what impact might such …

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“States responses to Covid 19 threat should not halt freedoms of assembly and association” – UN expert on the rights to freedoms of peaceful assembly and of association, Mr. Clément Voule

“Laws limiting public gatherings, as well as freedom of movement, have been passed in many States. Restrictions based on public health concerns are justified, where they are necessary and proportionate …