The main goal of this paper is to explore the practical challenges and opportunities related to the implementation of the Platform Work Directive (PWD) in Montenegro, with a specific focus on one of its key provisions: the presumption of employment. The platform work landscape in Montenegro is primarily characterized by online work (freelancing often mediated through global platforms like Upwork or Freelancer). This distinction is important for understanding the context in which regulatory challenges— such as employment classification and algorithmic management—are being discussed in Montenegro. While issues like control and surveillance are present, they often manifest differently than in the case of gig workers on location, where platforms exercise more direct oversight.
This Directive, which entered into force on December 1, 2024 after lengthy negotiations, sets out two main goals: (a) improving the working conditions of people performing platform work as employees, and (b) protecting the personal data of all platform workers, regardless of their employment status. In line with the first goal, the Directive introduces measures to help determine the correct employment status of platform workers. This is hardly surprising, as the issue of misclassification has been one of the most debated and researched topics in the platform economy. The key legal tool to address this issue is the introduction of a legal presumption of an employment relationship for platform workers. This means that when certain criteria indicating the platform’s control over the worker are met, the worker will be presumed to be an employee. Crucially, it is then up to the platform to prove otherwise. By shifting the burden of proof in this way, the Directive aims to counter the widespread and systematic misclassification of workers as independent contractors, which often deprives them of basic labor rights and protections.