| Abstract: |
Digital labour platforms have transformed the organisation of passenger transport, delivery, household services, logistics and online freelance work in Vietnam. The model creates new income opportunities and operational flexibility, but it also relocates managerial power into software, data systems and standard-form digital contracts. Platforms commonly classify workers as independent partners, even where they determine prices, allocate tasks, monitor performance, impose rating-based sanctions and deactivate accounts. This article examines the extent to which current Vietnamese labour law can respond to that transformation. It argues that Article 13 of the Labour Code 2019 provides an important functional foundation because a contract with another name may still be treated as an employment contract where it concerns paid work carried out under the management and supervision of another party. Nevertheless, the practical application of that rule is difficult when control is exercised through algorithms, the relevant evidence is held by the platform, and several corporate entities participate in the service chain. The article analyses employment status, contractual transparency, remuneration, working time, occupational safety and health, social insurance, personal data, automated decision-making, account deactivation, collective representation and dispute resolution. It also considers the Employment Law 2025, the Social Insurance Law 2024, the Trade Union Law 2024, the Personal Data Protection Law 2025, the Artificial Intelligence Law 2025 and the ILO Decent Work in the Platform Economy Convention, 2026 (No. 193). The article proposes a rebuttable presumption of employment, clearer indicators of algorithmic control, portable social protection, transparent payment and rating systems, fair procedures for deactivation, stronger collective voice and digitally equipped labour inspection. It concludes that legal protection should follow the economic reality and allocation of power in the relationship rather than the label chosen by the platform. |
