TOPIC WITH GENERAL IMPACT 1291 OF THE STF AND THE EUROPEAN DIRECTIVE (EU) 2024/2831 – JUDICIALIZATION IN BRAZIL AND THE PRINCIPLE OF PROHIBITION OF SOCIAL RETROGRESSION IN THE FACE OF THE VECTOR OF HUMAN DIGNITY

JUDICIALIZAÇÃO NO BRASIL E O PRINCÍPIO DA VEDAÇÃO AO RETROCESSO SOCIAL FRENTE AO VETOR DA DIGNIDADE DA PESSOA HUMANA

Abstract

The European Union has taken a significant step in enhancing the protection of platform-based workers through the enactment of Directive (EU) 2024/2831, which establishes minimum standards for working conditions within digital labor platforms. One of the Directive’s most notable innovations is the introduction of a rebuttable legal presumption of an employment relationship whenever specific indicators are present, such as the platform’s control over working time, unilateral determination of remuneration, and supervision of the worker’s performance. In such circumstances, the burden of proof shifts to the platform, which must unequivocally demonstrate the absence of an employment bond. In the Brazilian context, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) convened a public hearing on December 9, 2024, to inform its deliberations in a landmark case regarding the legal classification of the relationship between ride-hailing drivers and digital platforms—a phenomenon commonly described as the "uberization" of labor. The hearing, chaired by Justice Edson Fachin, brought together stakeholders from the corporate sector, labor unions, and civil society, thereby ensuring a diversity of perspectives. A final decision is anticipated in the 2025 judicial term. The hearing highlighted the precarious situation of platform workers, who, despite being formally categorized as self-employed, are in practice subject to stringent algorithmic management. Testimonies revealed that platforms exercise real-time oversight of service provision and enforce automated disciplinary measures, evidencing structural subordination. Currently, the legal framework in Brazil remains silent on the specific regulation of platform labor, leaving workers in a normative vacuum. This regulatory gap has resulted in a historical regression and an unprecedented deterioration of labor rights and protections in the country.