On 13 November, the UK’s High Court ruled that the country’s government had failed to properly transpose European directives by not extending rules on health and safety protections to “workers”. This unprecedented decision, which follows a judicial review called for by the Independent Workers of Great Britain (IWGB), should enable many gig economy workers to get access to personal protective equipment (PPE) in order to protect themselves from Covid-19.
The IWGB union, which represents around 5,000 independent workers, called for the judicial review, a procedure whereby a judge can be called to verify the legality of a decision made by a public institution (see article n°12052), at the height of the pandemic having deemed the situation urgent. The union took the view that the government had not properly transposed European directives because there was no law in the UK guaranteeing “workers” – a status that entails fewer social rights than that
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