The Dilemma and Way Forward for Remote Workers Protection in the “Kingdom of Freedom” Process

The development of digital technology and the emergence of remote labor mode have freed workers from heavy physical labor and given them more freedom and autonomy in work. With the change of social concept of labor, workers also pay more attention to the freedom and decency of work, and workers seem to be moving toward the “Kingdom of Freedom” described by Marx. At the same time, remote work has also caused disagreements in the application of the existing labor laws, which are manifested in the difficulties in identifying labor relations due to the weakened personality subordination of remote workers, the difficulties in identifying work-related injuries due to the irregularity of remote workplaces, the failure of the current Classification and Catalogue of Occupational Diseases to cover the new health crisis faced by remote workers, and the blurring of the boundary between workers’ personal life and work by information technology. Workers are in a state of ready contact and employers violate workers’ right to rest, etc. Therefore, from the perspective of labor relations, it is necessary to establish the criteria for determining remote labor relations from the perspective of the profitability of employers and the economic subordination of workers, redefine the principles for determining remote labor injuries, expand the Classification and Catalogue of Occupational Diseases and establish open-ended provisions, and grant workers the “right to refuse contact” in order to protect remote workers more comprehensively in the digital era.