Dr M: Govt mulling new laws to regulate gig economy, protect independent workers

KUALA LUMPUR: New laws are being considered to regulate the growing gig economy to protect independent workers such as Foodpanda riders, says Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The Prime Minister said this is necessary, as there are currently no laws to regulate the gig economy and protect independent workers.

"Foodpanda is considered the first to introduce gig economy in Malaysia and when it was introduced, we were not proficient with the word 'gig economy'.

"That is why we need laws and regulations, as there is a possibility that such workers (independent workers) may be oppressed by employers," he said when replying a supplementary question raised by Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali (PH-Bagan Serai) in Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday (Oct 22).

Dr Noor wanted to know if the new laws would also include requirements for food delivery riders to undergo safety classes, as he had been involved in a road accident with a Foodpanda rider.

"For your information, Speaker, I was hit by a Foodpanda rider," Dr Noor said, drawing laughter from the House.

In his supplementary question, Fahmi Fadzil (PH-Lembah Pantai) said there were about 13,000 Foodpanda and 10,000 Grab Food riders, not including some 150,000 e-hailing drivers employed under the gig economy.

Fahmi wanted to know if the new laws would allow such workers to contribute towards social security protection scheme and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) as they will comprise 26% of the nation's workforce, according to the World Bank.

Dr Mahathir said the government is looking into the matter to determine what sort of workers' interests are to be protected under the new laws.

"There are a lot of benefits from the gig economy, and that is why we need to maintain the system but with regulations to protect the rights of workers," he added.

Earlier, Dr Mahathir told lawmakers that the government has set up a special tripartite committee, comprising three ministries to resolve issues related to the gig economy, including the legal aspect.

He said the committee will involve the Human Resources Ministry, Youth and Sports Ministry and the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs Ministry.

Earlier this month, some disgruntled Foodpanda riders went on strike in Negri Sembilan, Johor, Melaka and Sabah to protest the company's new pay scheme, which increases payments per delivery, but removes the fixed hourly payment.

A gig economy is a free market system in which temporary positions are contracted out by companies to independent workers for short-term engagements.

Among the business models identified in the gig economy are Foodpanda, Uber, Grab and Airbnb, which rely on a digital platform for their business enterprises.