Tech in Africa
The Fairwork Foundation has partnered with legal academics and researchers from the University of Western Cape, Oxford, Cape Town, and Manchester to introduce the new Code of Good Practice for gig workers across South Africa.
The Code of Good Practice is applicable to existing international law and will safeguard the South African gig economy. As a new practice, it will be a resource for workers, legal practitioners, policymakers, and decision-makers aiming to best protect the gig workers falling behind regulatory cracks.
The Fairwork Foundation is an action-research that certifies the best employment practices and applied across platforms operating throughout South Africa.
Gig workers comprise independent contractors, contract firm workers, online platform workers, on-call workers, and digital economy firms like e-hailing and other delivery apps.
The Code of Good Practice draws on existing international frameworks and is based on the principles of fair play, fair contracts, fair conditions, fair representation, and fair management.
In a statement, The Fairwork Foundation pointed out the “lack of legal protection for gig workers” a fact that has resulted in platforms exploiting their gig workers. The statement thus advocated for “better application of existing law” in the enforcement of minimum legal standards.
Professor Darcy du Toit, at the University of Western Cape, also emphasized “all workers have the same rights.” It further points out that in as much as most platforms claim independence, most actually are not.
One of the code’s main authors, Professor Sandra Fredman (Oxford University Faculty of Law) pointed out how high levels of unemployment are solved by exploitation.
Source article: ITWeb
