In my graduation thesis, I focused on exploring work through online platforms during the covid-19 epidemic. In the theoretical part, I presented the covid-19 epidemic and the measures taken in response to it. I defined the concept of online platform, described the characteristics of working through online platforms and presented online platforms in Slovenia. I further outlined the general conditions of work, with focus on the arrangement of working hours and payment. In the theoretical introduction, I outlined the topic of safety and health at work and the regulation of this area during the covid-19 epidemic. I also presented the aspect of collective organization of platform workers. I ended the theoretical part with describing a connection between platform work and social work. In my graduation thesis, I answered the research questions related to the regulation of the general working conditions of platform workers. I was interested in how the safety and health of platform workers are regulated, how is this area regulated during the covid-19 epidemic, what are the working hours like and how is the payment of platform workers organized. In the empirical part, I presented the findings of the qualitative research I conducted - by interviewing a non-probabaility accidental sample of four people who work through online food delivery platforms in Slovenia. Through research, I came to the conclusion that the general working conditions of platform workers are regulated differently. I found out that platform workers have a responsibility in providing and maintaining certain work equipment. I also answered the question of what work tools the online platform provides. I discovered that customer ratings are not essential to a platform worker, therefore the workers are not under pressure because of the ratings. In times of the covid-19 epidemic, the online platform informs workers about the importance of complying with applicable safety measures and provides protective equipment (protective masks, disinfectants) to workers, although some workers are unaware of this. In platform work, the flexibilization of working time is disguised in the idea of the freedom to choose one's own working day. The working time of a platform worker is flexible and not limited, except in certain cases. Workers are also flexible about the resting hours. The payment of platform workers varies between platforms. On some platforms, workers are paid only according to the number of deliveries they make, while on others they also have an hourly rate guaranteed. The obtained results are important, as there is currently not much data on platform work in Slovenia. The findings of the research are also relevant for the profession of social work, especially for the field of social protection, as I answer questions that are important for providing decent working conditions to the individual.
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