Do IT Workers Need Labour Rights? A Critical Look at Gig Contracts as an Intermediate Employment Model in Ukraine

by Yana Simutina, Visiting Professor, University of Bristol Law School

(Photo: UNDP in Ukraine/Internews)

The digitalisaton and emergence of the gig economy has led to significant changes in employment and labour relations around the world. As businesses seek more flexible and cost-effective solutions for hiring workers, policymakers are considering adapting the regulatory framework to the challenges of new forms work. Ukraine, a country undergoing economic and social transformation, has experienced growth in the digital sector over the last decade (especially before the full-scale Russian invasion). Against this background, a new legal framework for IT companies is called Diia.City was launched in 2021 by adopting the Law on Stimulating the Development of the Digital Economy in Ukraine (LSDDE). The LSDDE introduced new legal concepts such as the ‘gig contract’, which is not legally defined or applied in other jurisdictions or EU law. In any case, the use of the term ‘gig’ is associated with digital platforms and fragmented activities carried out outside the framework of traditional forms of employment, with irregular or additional income without labour protection. Given that the ‘gig contract’ category has a rather negative connotation from a labour law perspective, several questions arise. First, what are the potential benefits and challenges of this employment model? Secondly, in a broader context, are gig contracts a sustainable solution to the challenges of employment relations in the digital economy, or do they further blur the boundaries between civil and labour law? (more…)

How are international courts dealing with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine?

by Lawrence Hill-Cawthorne, University of Bristol Law School

UN Photo/CIJ-ICJ/Frank van Beek. Courtesy of the ICJ.

Since the commencement of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the end of February, different international courts and tribunals have been engaged as means to invoke international responsibility for the various violations of international law that have occurred. As is often the case in international law, however, the proceedings initiated before these tribunals reflect a very particular legal framing of the broader invasion and conduct of hostilities (I wrote on this theme a few years ago in relation to the post-2014 litigation between Ukraine and Russia). This is a consequence of the absence in international law of a single, integrated judicial system with compulsory jurisdiction. Instead, there are many different courts that, for the most part, have limited subject-matter jurisdiction. (more…)

Can Russia be held responsible for their invasion of Ukraine?

This post is part of a short series of blog posts exploring the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine against the background rules of international law. The posts are based on presentations given at an event on the subject on 7 March that was organised by the University of Bristol Law School’s Centre for International Law. In this second blog post of the series, Dr Kathryn Allinson of the School of Law, University of Bristol, considers the possibility of invoking responsibility against Russia for their invasion of Ukraine. 

Dr. Kathryn Allinson, University of Bristol Law School

Wikimedia commons

In the early hours of 24 February, President Putin set out his justifications for the use of Russian military force against Ukraine. This was followed by the commencement of aerial strikes across Ukraine and the invasion by ground troops of Ukrainian territory. In this blog, I will explore the role that the international law on state responsibility (as articulated in the Articles on the Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts (ARSIWA)) can play in responding to this conduct by Russia.

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Was Russia’s Attack on the Maternity Hospital in Mariupol a Violation of International Humanitarian Law?

This post is part of a short series of blog posts exploring the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine against the background rules of international law. The posts are based on presentations given at an event on the subject on 7 March that was organised by the University of Bristol Law School’s Centre for International Law.

In this first blog post of the series, Professor Noëlle Quénivet from the University of the West of England introduces us to the question of the compatibility of Russia’s invasion with international humanitarian law (the law of armed conflict).

by Noëlle Quénivet, Professor in International Law, University of West of England

In the last few weeks, the press has reported numerous instances of attacks by Russian forces on cities, hospitals, airports, nuclear power plants, places of worships, etc. The list is very long. But are all these attacks automatically unlawful, as often claimed in press reports? After explaining the legal framework to determine the lawfulness of these attacks, this post, using the example of the attack on hospitals, and more specifically the maternity hospital in Mariupol, illustrates how the targeting rules apply and argues that, even in the case of an attack against medical facilities, the answer is not always a straight: ‘it is unlawful’. (more…)