Deutsche Welle (English edition)
EU takes step to help 'gig' economy workers
Around one in 10 people on the bloc's labor market have got work through digital platforms, such as Uber or Deliveroo, but many miss out on workers rights.
The European Commission on Wednesday launched a public consultation to look into the legal employment status and conditions of gig economy workers.
It is the bloc's first step aimed at improving the rights of such
workers, who work through digital labor platforms, such as ridehailing or food-delivery apps.
Uber, Just Eat and Deliveroo are among some of the digital platforms used by gig economy workers in Europe.
Such platforms have been particularly in-demand during the coronavirus pandemic, as consumers turned online during lockdowns across the EU.
The gig economy debate
The gig economy allows for flexible working conditions, as well as "job opportunities and additional revenue, including for people who might find it more difficult to enter the traditional labor market," the commission said on Wednesday.
But companies working in the sector are frequently accused of taking advantage of the selfemployed status of workers to avoid covering social security payments and other benefits.
Courts in the UK and Spain have already overruled "self-employed" claims from some companies in the sector.
On Wednesday, Italy followed suit.
Prosecutors told Uber Eats, Glovo, Just Eat and Deliveroo in Italy their couriers were employees and not independent workers.
The companies were fined €733 million ($892 million) for breach of labor safety rules. The more than 60,000 couriers must be offered non-permanent contracts with fixed pay, the Milan prosecutors' office said in a statement.
What will the EU consultation do?
The first phase of the EU initiative will see six-week consultations with trade unions and employer organizations about their views on improving working conditions.
If labor and business representatives choose not to enter negotiations on the issue, there will be a second round of consultations on possible measures the EU could take.
If the two side still do not come to the table after that, then the commission said it will "put forward an initiative by the end of the year."
Uber said it plans to work with policymakers and social groups on the proposal.
kmm/rs (AFP, Reuters)
Investigators uncovered a total of 23 metric tons (25 US tons) of cocaine with a street value of billions of euros in a cross-European drugs bust, German customs said Wednesday.
The cocaine was uncovered in Germany and Belgium.
The mega shipments together are an "absolute record," Dutch police said in a statement. "Never before has so much cocaine been intercepted at once," they added.
How did authorities uncover the cocaine shipment?
A company based in the Netherlands gave German authorities a tip-off. This led to them finding 16 metric tons of cocaine at the port of Hamburg on February 12.
The cocaine was hidden inside containers from Paraguay.
Customs officers at the port took a closer look at the Paraguayan containers after noticing "clear irregularities" with its contents — tin cans that were meant to be filled with putty.
The customs officials ordered for the containers to be unloaded. They found that "beyond a layer of genuine goods packed just behind the container door, numerous tin cans were in fact filled with other goods."
In all, some 16 tons of cocaine was eventually found in more than 1,700 tin cans. Each contained eight cocaine packages weighing more than 9 kilograms (20 pounds) each.
Joint investigations into the stash led authorities to find another 7.2 metric tons in cocaine at the port of Antwerp in Belgium, German customs said.
Antwerp is Europe's second largest port.
The stash in Belgium was hidden in a container full of wooden blocks, investigators said.
The drugs were all bound for "the same destination in the Netherlands," Dutch police said.
Has anyone been arrested?
The 28-year-old owner of an import company in the major port city of Rotterdam was arrested early Wednesday in the Netherlands over the illicit cargo.
The arrest was made as Dutch police searched two premises — one in Rotterdam and another in the nearby village of Vlaardingen.
The cocaine's street value
"We are estimating a street sales value of between €1.5 billion and €3.5 billion ($1.8 billion and $4.3 billion) for the 16 tons," Hamburg customs office chief Rene Matschke told news agency AFP, speaking on the amount found at the German port.
The higher value would apply if the drug was sold "cut" or diluted with other substances.
How often do authorities find such shipments?
In all, 102 metric tons of cocaine headed for the European continent were intercepted last year by an international law enforcement project co-implemented by the UN.
The majority of the shipments arrived at Antwerp. Last year, a total of 65.5 metric tons were seized there in 2020 —this is an all-time record for the port.
The drugs come from Latin America — mostly from Colombia, Brazil and Ecuador.
What's next for European law enforcement?
"We are probably only seeing the tip of the iceberg," Germany's Green Party lawmaker Irene Mihalic said on the latest bust.
Further investigations are set to be carried out on behalf of the Hamburg public prosecutor and in close coordination with Dutch authorities.
kmm/aw (AFP, dpa)