Don’t forget Platform Workers!

Illustration:Liu Rui/GT

Backed by advanced internet technology, the platform economy brings massive jobs in fields like take-away service and ride-hailing. Latest data show that there are currently up to 200 million flexible employees in China. However, this enormous group has yet been fully covered by national employment injury insurance, many of whom, when caught in accidents at work, have to bear all the costs on their own, thus leading to frequent labor disputes. At present, the complexity of flexible employment makes these people hardly fit with current employment injury insurance. Additionally, the lack of institutional guarantee and regional variations further hinder the full implementation of an injury insurance system for flexible workers. To this end, the relative restriction of employment injury insurance should be lifted and allow the participation of individuals. Meanwhile, specific measures are necessary to improve the insurance services. More importantly, the platforms ought to assume the responsibility and highlight the protection of the floating population.