Labour markets, welfare, and the personal scope of employment law

The issues which confront those concerned with employment law, about the types of workers to whom employment laws apply, are highly relevant to the subject of labour markets and welfare. The formulation and application of the personal categories of employment law is or involves a welfare allocation, often seen as a trade-off between welfare and efficiency. This article describe the basic legal framework for determining the personal scope of employment law in the UK, considers some recent adaptations to that framework, engages in comparison with some continental European legal systems, examines empirical evidence about the working of the personal categories of employment law, describes the debate within the ILO about employment status and 'contract labour', canvasses some ideas about the growth of complex work relationships, and concludes by assessing a remaining task of further refinement of theory in this area.