Louis Ng on Platform Workers Bill

The Platform Workers Bill only covers self-employed persons who work with platform operators to provide delivery or ride-hail services. It does not cover self-employed persons who work with operators of services such as domestic cleaning, beauty and caregiving. MP Louis Ng, who raised this concern in Parliament on Tuesday (Sep 10), wanted to know the rationale for “not going further”. He wanted to know if the Government would look into expanding the definition to cover all types of platform services and whether it has a timeline for reviewing the scope of the definition. Mr Ng also sought clarification on protection for platform workers who encounter discrimination and unfair dismissal, saying the Bill does not appear to prohibit platform operators from unfairly removing a worker from the platform service or making decisions which discriminate against the platform worker. He wanted to know if the Government can look into the need for better mechanisms for recourse against unfair dismissal and discrimination. Mr Ng also stressed the need for transparency in decision-making by platform operators, as well as for key factors such as distance, destination, ratings and tips for platform workers. He asked if the Government could look into the necessity of introducing such provisions.