The gig economy: worker status and employment law

Service page: Employment lawyer: dismissals, wages and severance pay.

Employee or self-employed? This is the question that decides everything

Gett and Yango drivers, Wolt and 10bis couriers, freelancers on Fiverr: they are all part of the gig economy. What they have in common: they work through digital platforms, often without fixed hours, without a regular employment contract, and classified as “independent contractors”.

This classification suits the companies: it saves National Insurance (Bituach Leumi), pension, severance pay and sick pay. But in Israeli employment law, “employee” status is determined by the substance of the relationship, not by what is written in the contract, and it cannot be waived by signing. It is also important to know what does not exist: Israeli law has no third category, an “intermediate status”, between an employee and a self-employed person. Either there is an employment relationship, with all the rights that come with it, or there is not. The general background to the classification tests is explained in the article An independent contractor agreement: what it must contain, and what can cost you dearly.

The integration test: the tool the court uses to decide

Over the years, the National Labor Court developed the integration test for deciding whether a person is an employee. The test has two sides: the positive side, meaning how far you are integrated into the platform’s organizational structure, and whether your work is an integral part of its activity (without couriers there is no delivery app); and the negative side, meaning whether you have no independent business of your own that provides services to the public, that is, whether you bear the costs of a business, its profit and its loss.

Alongside the integration test, the court applies a “mixed test” and looks at further signs: who sets the hours and shifts, who sets the price for the customer, who provides the work tools, whether you work for one party only, and whether the platform can “disconnect” you at its discretion. The more the answers point to dependence on the platform and control by it, the higher the chance that the court will recognize you as employees. On the other side of the fence, clients (service recipients) who want to avoid reclassification will find the relevant clauses in the article An independent contractor agreement: what it must contain.

The Wolt case: what happened in practice (2022–2026)

This is a case reported in the media. According to the report in Israel Hayom (in Hebrew) (3 August 2022), the Tel Aviv Regional Labor Court approved a motion to conduct a class action against Wolt on the question whether the couriers are its employees, because it found a reasonable possibility that it would be decided that there is an employment relationship, and that most of the tests for an employment relationship are met. Wolt announced that it would appeal to the National Labor Court.

In September 2026, after a long mediation process, the parties announced a settlement agreement: according to the reports, Wolt will pay about NIS 34.3 million to couriers who worked through the platform since its launch in Israel, and will give them average pay of no less than the hourly minimum wage, a refund of up to 50% of their deposits into pension savings, personal accident insurance at the company’s expense, and a right to be heard before a decision to end the engagement, without recognizing the couriers as employees. The settlement requires the approval of the National Labor Court.

What this means in practice: the question of principle, whether a platform courier is an employee, has not been decided in a final judgment, and the integration test continues to apply to each case on its merits. Anyone who works with another platform, or whose terms of engagement are different, is not bound by the outcome of the Wolt case.

What a gig worker in Israel is entitled to, if recognized as an employee

If it is decided that the person is an “employee”, all the employment laws apply to them: the Minimum Wage Law, 5747-1987, the Annual Leave Law, 5711-1951, the Sick Pay Law, 5736-1976, the Severance Pay Law, 5723-1963, and the Extension Order for Comprehensive Pension Insurance in the Economy (צו ההרחבה לביטוח פנסיוני מקיף במשק) (mandatory pension contributions: rates and conditions). The recognition works retroactively: the employee is entitled to all the rights that derive from the employment relationship for the period of employment, subject to the rules on limitation (prescription).

There is also another side to the coin. When an employment relationship is recognized retroactively, the employer may claim a set-off of the extra amounts it paid the “self-employed” person beyond the wage it would have paid an employee. That is why such a claim needs an exact calculation: of what you actually received, of what you would have been owed as employees, and of the difference. Note also that compensation for late payment of wages under the Wage Protection Law, 5718-1958 has an especially short limitation period (section 17A of the Law), so there is no point in waiting. This calculation, and the choice of the track on which the claim will be filed, are exactly what an employment lawyer does before filing.

Minimum wage per hour: a numerical example

The “per order” payment method hides a problem: when you also count the waiting time between orders and the drive to the pickup point, the pay per hour often falls below the minimum wage. From 1 April 2026 the minimum wage is NIS 6,443.85 a month, that is, NIS 35.40 an hour (see minimum wage in Israel: updates, calculation and rights).

Example: a courier who was logged in to the app for 160 hours in a month and received NIS 4,800 for orders earned NIS 30 an hour. Had they been recognized as an employee, the minimum wage for that month would have been 160 × 35.40 = NIS 5,664, a difference of NIS 864 for one month alone, before pension, annual leave and recuperation pay (dmei havra’a). The example assumes that the waiting time between orders is working time, a question that is examined in each case on its merits, according to how much control the platform has over that time.

Minimum wage differences for years back, plus the social benefits, are the reason platforms fight over the classification. The guide late payment of wages: when and how to sue the employer explains the tools for collecting wages that were not paid.

Algorithms and transparency: the right to know what sets your pay

The gig economy is run by algorithms: they allocate work, set the price and decide who is blocked. Section 13(a) of the Protection of Privacy Law, 5741-1981 provides that every person is entitled to inspect information about them that is held in a database. A platform worker whose account was blocked or whose rating was lowered can demand to inspect the data the platform keeps about them, a first step before any claim. On the limits of the information an employer may collect, see employee monitoring: the limits of the law.

The European Union went further: Directive 2024/2831 on platform work, which entered into force in December 2024 and which the member states must implement by 2 December 2026, requires human oversight of algorithmic decisions, prohibits suspending or disconnecting a worker by an automated decision alone, and gives a right to a written explanation. The directive does not apply in Israel, but it shows the direction in which regulation is going.

The global trend, and the situation in Israel

In the United Kingdom, the Supreme Court held in 2021 (Uber BV v Aslam) that Uber drivers are “workers”, an intermediate category in English law that is entitled to minimum wage and paid holiday. In France, the Court of Cassation (Cour de cassation) held on 4 March 2020 that an Uber driver is a salaried employee. The European directive of 2024 adds a presumption of an employment relationship where the platform controls the work, and shifts the burden of rebutting it to the platform.

Israel has no legislation specific to platform workers, and no intermediate status. The decision is made in the labor courts, case by case, according to the integration test, and the Wolt case ended in a settlement agreement without setting a binding rule. Anyone who thinks they are an employee in every respect needs to build their case on facts, not on headlines. A wide overview of the rights is gathered in the employment law information center.

What to do in practice

• Document: screenshots of the app, login hours, notices of suspension or of a lowered rating, and who sets the price and the work areas.
• Calculate: how many hours you actually worked and how much you received, compared with the hourly minimum wage and with the social benefits. A CPA or a lawyer who knows the payslip will do this correctly.
• Choose a track: a personal claim in the Regional Labor Court (proceedings in the Labor Court: a guide) is the simple route; a class action, as in the Wolt case, suits a situation where a large group is in the same position (filing a class action: a guide).

Frequently asked questions

Is a Wolt courier or a Gett driver an employee or self-employed?

There is no automatic answer. The platforms classify the couriers and drivers as self-employed, but the Labor Court examines the substance of the relationship according to the integration test: whether you are an integral part of the platform’s activity, and whether you have no independent business of your own. In the Wolt case, a case reported in the media, the Tel Aviv Regional Labor Court approved the conduct of a class action in August 2022, because it found a reasonable possibility that it would be decided that there is an employment relationship. But in September 2026 the parties filed a settlement agreement, which requires the approval of the National Labor Court, without a decision of principle, so each case is examined on its merits.

What am I entitled to if the Labor Court recognizes me as an employee retroactively?

All the rights that derive from the employment relationship for the period of employment: minimum wage differences, pension contributions under the extension order, payment for unused leave (vacation redemption), sick pay, recuperation pay, and severance pay if the engagement ended at the platform’s initiative after at least one year of employment (section 1 of the Severance Pay Law). Note: the employer may ask to set off amounts it overpaid you as “self-employed” compared with what it would have paid an employee, so it is important to calculate the claim correctly from the start.

Is there an “intermediate status” in Israel for platform workers?

No. Unlike the United Kingdom, where Uber drivers were recognized in 2021 as “workers” (an intermediate category in English law), Israeli law has only two statuses, employee or self-employed, and the choice between them is made in the Labor Court according to the integration test. The EU Platform Work Directive (2024/2831) also applies only to EU member states, even though it shows the direction.