Nordic Unions Demand Fair Labor Practices from Platform Companies
Leading professional unions across Scandinavia have issued a public statement urging platform companies, particularly the delivery service Wolt, to reform their employment models and sign collective bargaining agreements. The unions highlight a growing number of workers reliant on app-based, task-based contracts with low pay and no social protections, arguing that the platform economy has introduced detrimental practices like circumventing labor laws, shirking employer responsibility for safety, expanding the black market, and creating a large, unprotected workforce.
The statement, signed by multiple transportation and service worker unions from Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and the Faroe Islands, notes that many of these platform companies are owned or backed by large American corporations. These companies, the unions contend, are not only reshaping their specific industries but also exerting pressure on the Nordic labor market, which traditionally relies on collective dialogue between unions and employers and robust worker protections.
Wolt, though founded in Finland and operating globally, was acquired by the American company DoorDash in 2021. The unions revealed that their attempts to negotiate fair terms for Wolt couriers through collective bargaining have stalled, with the company unwilling to adequately improve working conditions. "To conduct genuine collective bargaining, unions need partners willing to negotiate in good faith, without predetermined outcomes or dictates," the statement read, adding that negotiations have been stuck for years.
The unions' public declaration aims to create a unified international front in Northern Europe, preventing companies like Wolt from employing divisive strategies and signaling support to workers struggling to organize. Such public appeals in Scandinavia often precede more significant actions like solidarity strikes or political pressure for regulation.
The unions emphasized the Nordic approach of integrating new technologies by shaping work practices collaboratively with employees and unions, balancing innovation with fair labor and equality. They called on all platform companies to engage in meaningful negotiations and respect the values of the Nordic labor market model. This comes after Finland's Supreme Court ruled last year that Wolt couriers are employees, but the company has not changed its practices.
This Nordic union action aligns with a broader regulatory push in Europe, including the EU's Platform Work Directive, which establishes a presumption of employment status for platform workers and introduces protections against algorithmic management. Internationally, the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Convention 193 also calls for decent work in the platform economy.
In contrast, Israel is seeing a different trend. A recent class-action settlement against Wolt in Israel preserves the couriers' status as independent contractors, though it mandates minimum wage compensation, safety training, and incentives for pension contributions. This classification, however, excludes them from key labor protections like paid sick leave, severance pay, and unemployment benefits, and legally prevents them from unionizing for collective bargaining.
