The Blurring of Employment Boundaries: A Social Economy Perspective

The boom in freelance workers and ‘atypical’ workers is the outcome of many different factors and has numerous implications. Throughout Europe, differing regulatory frameworks are resulting in similar difficulties for those seeking a balance between freedom to development of economic activity and access to social protection. Irrespective of the social status adopted by freelance workers or the contractual situation in the grey area of employment, the difficulties observed by SMart are: irregular, low income; legal and administrative complexity; work opportunities; tight cash flow; and difficulties in gaining access to training and social protection. While SMart addresses a number of issues, improved understanding and representation of these workers at the political level is necessary to provide them with real access to social protection.