GENEVA, June 12 (Reuters) - The International Labour Organization on Friday agreed to adopt the first binding employment standards for gig workers in services such as ride-hailing, food delivery and e-commerce, potentially giving them rights on pay, safety and social benefits.

Central to the agreement is ensuring that platforms can no longer classify workers as independent contractors and sidestep minimum wage requirements and obligations such as healthcare, sick leave and social security contributions.

The standards, however, still have to be ratified by governments and enforced by governments. The United States, for example, has frequently not ratified ILO conventions, whereas European countries have been more supportive.

A total of 406 members voted in favour of the employment standards convention and eight against, while 36 abstained. Members of the U.N. agency, which promotes international labour rights, include governments, employers and workers.

FRAMEWORK INCLUDES FLEXIBILITIES

The World Bank estimates that the number of app-based gig workers globally ranges from anywhere between 154 million and 435 million people.

Rights groups, including Human Rights Watch and trade unions, say that the widespread classification of workers as independent contractors allows companies to avoid paying the minimum wage and providing benefits.

A 2025 Human Rights Watch report found that U.S. platform workers surveyed earned a median of $5.12 per hour after expenses, with overall compensation falling around 30% below the federal minimum wage.

Amanda Brown, vice chair of the ILO's Workers' Group, which represents the interests of trade unions and workers around the world, said the agreement was a landmark moment for platform workers worldwide and a response to years of documented abuse and exploitation.

"For the first time in the history of international law, the women and men who move our cities, who clean and care in our homes ... will be named, recognised and protected by a binding international standard," Brown told delegates.

The convention also states that platforms must disclose how automated systems affect workers.

The head of the International Organisation of Employers, which represents about 50 million companies worldwide, welcomed the fact that the framework included flexibilities.

"It respects national legal systems and allows countries to determine employment status according to their own laws and established criteria," said IOE Secretary-General Roberto Suarez Santos.

The ILO has no enforcement power, but ILO members can submit complaints that may lead to investigations and increase pressure on governments. If a country has ratified the convention and implemented it into national law, then individuals may be able to take a platform economy company to court for direct legal redress.