EU Guidelines on the application of competition law in the gig economy

 

EU Guidelines on the application of competition law in the gig economy

The European Commission has set out Guidelines on the application of EU competition law to collective agreements. The Guidelines concern the conditions of solo self-employed persons.

Collective bargaining between employees and employers is outside the scope of EU competition law.

However, the self-employed are considered to be "undertakings" under EU law and an agreement between them risks being in breach of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

The Commission's Guidelines set out the circumstances in which solo self-employed are comparable to workers and therefore not subject to Article 101 of the TFEU.

The Commission also sets out the conditions where it will not intervene against collective agreements that aim to correct a clear imbalance in the bargaining power of solo self-employed persons and the other contracting party and which, by their nature and purpose, aim to improve working conditions.

The Commission has stated that it renew its guidelines on collective agreements for the self-employed by 2030.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_22_5796