LAGUNA — The BPO Industry Employees Network (BIEN) hailed the adoption of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 193 on Decent Work in the Platform Economy as a historic victory for millions of gig and platform workers worldwide as it strengthens the fight against precarious digital labor.
The ILO Convention No. 193 was adopted during the 114th International Labour Conference in Geneva where 406 voted in favor, with eight against and 36 abstentions. The convention establishes the first international labor standards specifically covering platform work. It seeks to guarantee labor rights and social protection for workers whose livelihoods are mediated by digital platforms, including ride-hailing drivers, delivery riders, online freelancers, content moderators, and data labelers.
For BIEN, the convention is a long-overdue recognition that platform companies cannot evade labor standards by classifying workers as independent contractors while exercising significant control over their work through applications and algorithms.
“For too long, platform companies have profited from a business model built on precarious work, low pay, and the denial of labor rights,” BIEN Vice President Christine Agan said in a statement. “Technology should improve workers’ lives, not become a tool to strip them of their rights.”
Among the convention’s key provisions are the protection of workers’ freedom of association and collective bargaining rights, access to social security, occupational safety and health standards, fair and transparent remuneration systems, and safeguards against the misclassification of employees as self-employed contractors.
The treaty also introduces measures regulating algorithmic management by requiring transparency in automated systems used to assign work, evaluate performance, determine compensation, or suspend and deactivate worker accounts. It likewise grants workers the right to contest automated decisions that affect their livelihood.
BIEN said that these protections are relevant in the Philippines where digital labor platforms have expanded while many workers have remained excluded from labor standards, social protection, and due process.
Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) said that it participated in two years of discussions on ILO Convention No. 193, including consultations in the Philippines and across the Asia-Pacific. While the labor center disagreed with some provisions due to the ILO’s tripartite framework requiring consensus among workers, employers, and governments, it described the convention as a significant advance for labor rights.
KMU expressed support for the convention’s ratification in the Philippines. The group added that it has been pushing for pro-worker legislation through platform consultations and assemblies since 2021, even before formal negotiations on the convention began.
Earlier this month, the Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) welcomed the recommendations of the ILO Committee on the Application of Standards calling on the Philippine government to align its laws and policies with ILO Convention No. 98 which guarantees workers’ rights to organize and bargain collectively.
“We are glad that the ILO has again spotlighted the Philippine government’s refusal to uphold workers’ rights to unionize, collectively bargain and strike. The low union and CBA coverage and low strike rates despite poor working conditions all attest to such refusal,” said CTUHR Executive Director Kamz Deligente.
The group lamented the continuing cases of union-busting, blacklisting, anti-union dismissals, and mass layoffs used to undermine workers’ organizing efforts. It also raised concerns over red-tagging, attacks against labor organizers, and other violations of trade union rights.
For BIEN, the adoption of the convention is the product of years of organizing and advocacy by workers’ movements across the world. However, the group stressed that its promise will only be realized through swift ratification, effective implementation, and the continued collective struggle of workers demanding decent work in both traditional and digital workplaces. (AMU, DAA)
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