Platform Work in the Delivery Sector: A Trade Union Perspective and Recommendations

Introduction: The EU Platform Work Directive (2024/2831) meetsa Polish delivery market shaped by the fleet-partner intermediationmodel and non-standard contracts.Objective: To examine the legal and practical conditions of platformwork in delivery (with references to ride-hailing) and propose policyoptions for implementing the Directive in Poland.Materials and methods: Analytic autoethnography based on theauthor’s experience as a rider and union leader since 2022, complementedby legislation, official and platform publications, unionsurveys, and stakeholder interactions (ministries, inspectorate,MPs, Social Dialogue Council).Results: The fleet-partner system constitutes a sui generis subtypeof platform work, outsourcing legal risk and obstructing unionisation;extensive use of mandate and rental contracts blurs liability,weakens minimum-wage protection, and fosters unpaid time/0-hour scheduling; multi-apping is structurally embedded. Effectiveimplementation requires going beyond the Directive’s minimum:clarify the legal status of partners (e.g., regulate as temporary workagencies with joint platform liability), redesign student and civillawarrangements, move toward employment contracts where appropriate,and reduce systemic complexity; enforcement capacityis essential. The study notes data gaps and limits inherent to anautoethnographic approach.