The new legal initiative aims to bring thousands of people out of the shadows, who are legally independent contractors but in reality are hired workers for digital platforms.
Employment Contract Instead of Self-Employment: What Will Change?
According to the document, couriers, taxi drivers, and freelancers who work through mobile apps will gain the status of full employees. This will give them social guarantees that were not available before:
paid holidays and sick leave;
a clear work schedule;
protection against sudden disconnection from the system (dismissal);
payments to pension and insurance funds by the employer.
Officials argue that the platforms fully control the process: they set prices, assign orders, and evaluate the quality of work. Therefore, this is not free entrepreneurship, but hidden employment relationships.
Economic Effect
For the state, this step has a practical goal. According to the Ministry of Labor's calculations, moving 35,000 people to employment contracts will bring at least 202 million euros per year to the budget through taxes and fees. This is a logical continuation of the EU directives from 2024, which recommend member states to regulate the status of platform workers.
The Downside: Prices Will Rise, and Service Will Slow Down
At the same time, representatives of online platforms are sounding the alarm. Businesses warn of negative consequences for both workers and customers:
Many couriers use the apps only for extra income in their free time. A strict schedule will force them to leave the market.
Additional costs for taxes and administration will be added by the platforms to the cost of rides and deliveries.
A smaller number of drivers and couriers will mean that waiting for an order will take much longer.
When to Expect Changes?
The Ministry of Labor is determined and plans to implement the new rules by the end of the current year. If the law is passed in its current form, the gig economy market in Slovakia will change forever.
