Unions call on ombudsman to investigate Wolt employment relationships
Finland's Supreme Administrative Court ruled last year that food couriers should be employees of delivery firms, and not self-employed entrepreneurs.
The service sector union PAM and the Auto and Transport Workers Union AKT have jointly requested that the Parliamentary Ombudsman investigate the supervision of Finnish delivery company Wolt, according to reports. The unions seek confirmation from the ombudsman as to whether the occupational safety and health authority has properly and promptly overseen Wolt's operations.
In a recent decision, Finland's Supreme Administrative Court determined that delivery couriers should be considered employees of delivery firms rather than self-employed entrepreneurs - a position that had prevailed in the past. This designation meant couriers did not qualify for employee benefits like sick leave or vacation time and were responsible for their own pension contributions.
In response, Wolt stated that couriers should have the choice to determine their employment status. Additionally, the company announced plans to appeal the Supreme Administrative Court's ruling. Despite this outcome, PAM and AKT claim that the majority of Wolt's couriers are still classified as self-employed entrepreneurs.
Written by urgent.news from Yle News Finland's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
