基于平台的低收入和中等收入国家工作监管：走向因地制宜的方法（英）2025

Towards a context-appropriate approach Table of Contents Acknowledgment Executive Summary 1. Introduction: Platform work as an opportunity to support job growth and productivity2. Labor regulations, when context appropriate, improve jobs: A conceptual framework3. Regulations should consider platform workers’ characteristics and preferences4. Current practices in the regulation of platform work in middle- and high-income countries List of Figures Figure 1: Classification of platform workersFigure 2: Theoretical model of workers’s labor costs and take-home pay in formaland informal hiring scenariosFigure 3: Main reason for preferring web-based platform work over other jobsFigure 4: Preferred potential job amenities, among web-based platform workersFigure 5: Typical risks that platform workers may face Acknowledgment This policy note was prepared as part of the activity of the Labor Global Solutions Group ‘Better LaborRegulations for the Digital Economy and Beyond’, led by Michael Weber in FY21–22 and Eliana Carranza andMatteo Morgandi in FY23–24. The paper was prepared by Matteo Morgandi, David Alzate and Maho Hatayama,and it draws from the various background papers: (a) ‘Regulating platform-based work in low- and middle- The paper also benefited from consultations with several external experts during the 2023 hybrid World Bankconference: ‘Regulating platform work in developing countries’. We thank peer reviewers and colleagues who Executive Summary Platform work has seen exponential growth in developing countries.Labor-based digital platforms servethe purpose of connecting “workers” - providers of goods or services - with private or business customers.Platform jobs include workers of all skill levels. They are offered either through web-based platforms (which Several risks and market failures make regulating this form of work important. These risks include the use ofalgorithmic management and the capacity for platforms to exercise significant market power over workers(as well as over consumers). An imbalanced work relationship can lead to unfair treatment, discrimination,or arbitrary exclusion from the digital market. Moreover, as some businesses shift service delivery and sales After reviewing a set of regulatory approaches from recent years, largely originating in high-income countries,this note proposes principles for how to engage in the regulation of platform-based work. It focuses primarilyon the trade-offs faced by low- and middle-income countries. The note draws from several background papers,consultations with experts, and case studies from World Bank country engagements. Its objective is to fill an The note is divided into three parts. Part One provides a conceptual framework for understanding labor marketdynamics and market failures typical of platform work. It then summarizes regulatory responses to thesefailures based on a review of regulations from middle- and high-income countries. We find that authoritieshave taken two main regulatory approaches. The first focuses on improving and clarifying the classification The second part of the paper reviews and consolidates emerging evidence on the characteristics of platformworkers in developing countries – including both web-based and location-based platform workers. Overall,both location-based and web-based platform workers are relatively young, well-educated, and predominantlymale, though differences exist across regions and contexts. The evidence base also reveals large heterogeneity The final part introduces some principles that could help craft regulations in the digital platform space in low-and middle-income countries. The fact that most developing countries have yet to introduce digital platformregulations provides an unprecedented opportunity to start thinking with a “clean slate” about regimes that Overall, this brief recommends: •A gradual approach to formalization for digital platform workers seems most appropriate for developingcountries – especially those where formal wage employment is scarce, labor productivity is low, andself-employment is prevalent. In this context, a gradual approach to formalization should go beyond thefocus on “classification” - i.e., whether the task is happening through a subordinate relationship (wage •Such a minimum package could include, among other protections, regulations to address specific risksfound in platforms: algorithmic management, data privacy, portability of reputation, recourse againstdisconnection, and digital payments. Integral to the gradual regulatory approach is the promotion ofcollective bargaining in the digital space. This promotion requires overcoming potential limits imposed •Governments should consider the structure of the local digital labor market before increasing explicitnonwage labor costs or generating mandates for employers that create implicit costs. In platformswhere workers have limited bargaining power, firms are more likely to pass on the cost of complyi