After identifying violations of privacy and labor rules, Italy’s data protection authorities on Monday (July 5) ordered the delivery business Foodinho, owned by the Spanish start-up Glovo, to update the computer algorithms used to manage personnel to avoid any discrimination. The action comes as a global debate rages on how to regulate employees’ rights in the digitized “gig economy.” A public consultation on proposed EU-wide guidelines has been launched by the European Commission.
Gig workers’ salaries and rights are being eroded by management algorithms on worldwide platforms, according to trade unions, just as lockdowns to contain the COVID-19 outbreak have raised demand for casual employees like delivery drivers.
After an inquiry into Foodinho’s management of its 19,000 riders in Italy, as well as other online delivery platforms, the watchdog, Garante, announced it had ordered the company to pay a 2.6 million euro (US$3.1 million) punishment.
It claimed that the corporation had failed to adequately explain its automatic order management system to its employees and had failed to ensure that the outcomes of automated processes used to evaluate workers’ performance were accurate.
According to the authority, Foodinho also failed to give workers with means to appeal decisions made using the algorithm, including the exclusion of some riders from receiving orders.
Foodinho has been given 150 days to implement the necessary modifications, and Spain’s data regulator will investigate Glovo’s international digital platform, according to the watchdog.
Glovo, which is located in Barcelona and operates in Italy through Foodinho, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The company serves 10 million customers in 20 countries, delivering everything from food to household necessities.
Last year, a Spanish court determined that Glovo employees were employees, not freelancers, and the Spanish government is considering legislation that would allow unions access to the algorithms used by internet corporations to manage their workforces.
In February, the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom ruled that a number of Uber drivers were entitled to minimum wage and other labor rights./n
