Victory for gig economy workers
[ch 8: page 41]In November 2020, the IWGB union won a judicial review against the government in the High Court. This found the government had failed to grant gig economy and other precarious workers the health and safety protections they are entitled to under EU health and safety law.
The union argued that EU law extends these protections to all those classified as “workers”, whereas UK law only protects “employees”. It says the judgment means that workers are entitled to the same EU-derived health and safety rights as employees. They should be provided with PPE by the business they are working for, and have the right to stop work in response to serious and imminent danger (see Chapter 14).
The IWGB called on the government to take legislative action to ensure all workers have the right to PPE and to refuse unsafe work. In the meantime, it says the judgment can be used by taking legal action via the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), local authorities or employment tribunals.
IWGB, IWGB wins groundbreaking health and safety legal challenge against the Government (https://iwgb.org.uk/post/iwgb-wins-groundbreaking-health-and-safety-legal-challenge-against-the-government)