Vol. 4 (S) Oct. 2022

Article ID. JHSSR-1196-2022

Due Diligence for the Protection of Platform Workers in Malaysia: A Human Rights Analysis

Maheran Makhtar, Zuhairah Ariff Abd Ghadas and Mahbubul Haque

Keywords:

due diligence, human rights in business, corporate responsibility, platform workers, platform-based economy

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Abstract:

Platform work and platform workers are transforming the present employment landscape in most countries, including Malaysia. A platform-based economy provides various career opportunities with flexible working hours, autonomy and control and the potential for a high income. Despite the economic benefits of the platform-based economy, there are rising concerns about workers’ precarious working circumstances and a lack of regulation to protect their human rights. In the platform-based economy, business risks are often passed to platform workers with weak legal human rights safeguards. This study employed a qualitative methodology based on document analysis, a systematic procedure for analysing or assessing printed and electronic documents to elicit meaning, acquire comprehension and produce empirical knowledge. This conceptual article aims to investigate the notion of due diligence as an essential component of corporate responsibility in the business and human rights (BHR) framework. Furthermore, this article examined the concept and application of human rights due diligence in a platform-based economy to protect platform workers’ rights. This research discovers that there is a need for corporations of all sizes and sectors to understand the notion of corporate responsibility to respect human rights, and show commitments to incorporating human rights due diligence within their corporate governance, regardless of the method used to conduct business.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.37534/bp.jhssr.2022.v4.nS.id1196.p5