Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 November 2025
326. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the means by which his Department intends to take account of the 2023 Supreme Court “Karshan ruling” when transposing the EU Platform Workers Directive into law; whether the five step framework in that ruling will be applied to the determination of the employment status of platform workers and those working in the gig economy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65772/25]
View answerThe Improving Working Conditions in Platform Work Directive entered into force on 1 December 2024. EU Member States have until 2 December 2026 to transpose the Directive into national law.
The Directive is complex and wide ranging. It seeks to ensure people working though digital labour platforms have the correct legal employment status that corresponds to their actual working arrangements, enabling them to benefit from the employment rights they are entitled to.
The Directive also aims to regulate the use of algorithms by digital labour platforms. The Directive will make the use of algorithms in human resources management in platform work more transparent, ensuring that automated systems are monitored by qualified staff, and that workers have the right to contest automated decisions. The Directive also imposes substantial limitations on the processing of personal data by these systems.
The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment has recently completed consultations with Government Departments, and the public consultation process has also concluded. In the coming weeks, the Department will convene a transposition forum with relevant government stakeholders to review the consultation outcomes and discuss transposition measures.
It is anticipated that the ruling of the Supreme Court in the Domino’s Pizza case (Revenue Commissioners v. Karshan (Midlands) Ltd. T/A Domino’s Pizza); five-step framework included in that judgment; and subsequent Revenue, Department of Social Protection, WRC Code of Practice on Determining Employment Status published in November 2024 will be considered with respect to the provisions of Chapter II of the Platform Work Directive, which concerns employment status.
