The platformisation of home care

This Policy Brief has been developed as part of the ORIGAMI Project (hOme caRe dIGital Platform and Industrial relations), funded by the European Commission.

The Policy Brief is structured as follows. Section 1 sets the scene and describes the challenges, trends and perspectives relevant to the home care sector in the EU. Section 2 introduces the EU Care Framework, i.e. the European Care Strategy and 2022 Council Recommendation, and its interrelation with national practices. Section 3 presents the core of the Brief, examining how digital labour platforms are transforming home care and domestic work, offering flexibility but also increasing precarity in several cases. Section 4 reviews the Platform Work Directive – its rules on employment status, algorithmic management, and collective rights – and its potential impact on care and domestic platform workers. Section 5 discusses platform cooperatives as fairer alternatives. The final section outlines policy reflections and recommendations, highlighting avenues for strengthening consistency between the EU’s digital and social policy frameworks.