The gig economy is now subject to new right-to-work checks

The Home Office has announced that they will be stepping up their crackdown against illegal work and companies hiring for the gig economy.

The Home Office said that new right-to-work checks would require companies that hire people for the gig economy to confirm that any person working under their name has the legal right to work in the UK. This will bring them into line with other employers.

The Home Office announced that for the first time in history, employers of gig economy workers and those working zero hours would have to undergo employment checks. This includes sectors like construction, food delivery and beauty salons, as well as courier services.

The Home Office in its statement praised Deliveroo and Just Eat for voluntarily conducting checks on their employees to verify that they are legally entitled to work.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper stated: “Under the Plan for Change we restore order to asylum and immigration by introducing stricter laws, bolstering enforcement actions to combat illegal working and stop rogue employer in their tracks.

Turning a blind-eye to illegal work plays into the hands people smugglers who try to sell space on overcrowded, flimsy boats in exchange for the promise of a job and a new life in the UK.

Checks will be conducted to confirm the immigration status of an individual and their right for them to work in Britain. Businesses that fail to comply could face fines up to PS60,000 for each worker, closure of their business, disqualification of directors and prison sentences up to five year.

Chetal Patel is the head of immigration for Bates Wells. She said that the impact of employment checks on the gig-economy “shouldn’t be underestimated”, and businesses need to have robust systems to conduct these checks.

Patel said that the wider reputational risks of illegal work are just one factor. On the other hand, civil penalties up to PS60,000 can be imposed per illegal worker.

Hannah Wright, senior Associate in the Employment Team at Bates Wells added that the expansion right to work tests will mitigate the risk modern slavery.

Wright stated: “From the announcement by the Home Office, it’s clear that platforms in the gig economy will use digital ID verification to support the right-to-work checks. These systems must, however, be implemented in an ethical, transparent and non-discriminatory manner.

“Gig Economy platforms that use these systems must prioritise openness, transparency and accountability. They should ensure that workers know what checks are being used for and how decisions are made, and that they have a way to effectively challenge the technology if it does not work.”

Wright said that the use of substitution clauses by platforms in the gig economy created further complications. They were widely used in the gig economy sector to avoid establishing an employment relationship and, as a result, basic employment rights and protections.

She said that in reality, many of these clauses are fictions. This created an unfairness, but it also created a vulnerability in terms of illegal work, because businesses were unable to implement systems that would allow for substitutes, while still effectively protecting against the risks associated with illegal working. Wright said that this could leave their platforms vulnerable to manipulation and exploitation.

New measures were introduced in conjunction with a stepped-up operation by Immigration Enforcement Teams, which have since July carried out 6,784 visits to illegally work on premises and made 4,779 arrested – an increase from 40% and 42% when compared to the same period a year ago. Since July, 1,508 civil penalty notices were issued.

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