At the invitation of the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs, the Centre for Public Policy Research was invited to participate in consultations with experts from EU member states within the Twinning Project “Support to Improving Working Conditions and Preparing the Republic of Serbia for Participation in EURES”, funded by the European Union.
At the meeting held on July 18, 2025, the Centre presented key findings from its multi-year research on the challenges of regulating the employment status of digital platform workers—both those working on-site and those engaged online. The invitation to take part in these consultations came as a result of the Centre being recognized as a resource body for issues concerning the position of platform workers in Serbia and the wider region.
The Centre pointed out the specific characteristics of the domestic labour market, where a significant number of on-site platform workers are employed long-term and to an extent that exceeds the characteristics of seasonal or occasional engagement. In this context, a proposal for a normative solution was presented, aiming to ensure clear recognition of the employment relationship, particularly for those fulfilling the criteria of continuous and subordinate work, in accordance with the prevailing standards of labour law.
The proposal was developed in collaboration with the Association for Labour Law and Social Insurance, the United Branch Trade Unions “Independence”, the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia, and the NGO Digital Community, during the work of this informal coalition on the project “New Employment: Advocating for the Rights of Workers on Digital Platforms in Serbia” (2023–2024), supported by the European Union. The continuation of the research and advocacy process is supported by the Olof Palme Center.
Work on the analysis of the alignment of the Labour Law with several EU directives and International Labour Organization conventions, including the Directive on Platform Work, is currently ongoing. The Centre continues to contribute—through research and the development of practical solutions—to building a fairer and more sustainable legislative framework for platform work in Serbia.
