China has formalised its first comprehensive policy framework governing gig workers in the platform economy, covering delivery riders and online livestreamers, with a target to standardise practices by 2027.

The framework sets a 2027 compliance deadline to standardise labour practices across the platform economy and focuses on major players like Meituan, Didi, Alibaba’s Ele.me, JD.com, and SF Express.

With tens of millions of workers in delivery, ride-hailing, e-commerce, and live commerce, the policy aims to standardise labour practices across the gig sector by 2027.

Platforms must improve working conditions and consult worker representatives before making decisions affecting livelihoods, strengthening worker voice in governance.

Algorithms governing onboarding, task assignment, pay, hours, and incentives must be developed and regularly revised, with negotiations to include worker representatives or unions; the algorithm itself becomes a subject of collective bargaining.

Platforms must ensure at least a local minimum wage, enforce maximum working hours via the app, prohibit further dispatches after limits are reached, and push rest reminders to workers.

The policy seeks to strengthen oversight of platform algorithms by increasing transparency and promoting the use of AI and IoT to optimise algorithmic systems.

It advocates using artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things to optimise, not exploit, gig workers’ algorithmic systems.

Major tech platforms like Meituan, Alibaba, JD.com, and various logistics operators are required to align pay with labour intensity and curb excessive commissions.

Tech platforms and logistics operators must align pay with labour intensity, reduce excessive commissions, and improve working conditions.

Employment contracts or written agreements are required where employment conditions exist or are uncertain, and platforms must publicly display labour rules at least seven days before they take effect.

Early corporate responses include subsidies and social security commitments from major players, though the enforcement and delivery of benefits remain uncertain.