Costa Mar debates whether tourism platforms exploit young workers

The Costa Mar Regional Assembly's Labor and Commerce Committee convened on Monday to examine the working conditions of people who use digital tourism platforms—dive guides, boat captains, hotel staff, and tour coordinators who accept work through apps and websites that connect them with visiting tourists. The hearing was prompted by a petition signed by 340 workers, filed in June, alleging that the platforms exercise excessive control over pricing, scheduling, and worker behavior while claiming the workers are independent contractors.

The platforms in question—three major booking services used across the peninsula—argue that their role is facilitating connections, not employment. They set no minimum wages, no shift requirements, and no exclusivity; workers choose when and whether to accept jobs. The platforms take a commission, typically 18 to 25 percent of the transaction value, and provide the digital infrastructure that makes the matching possible. One platform representative told the committee that the service has enabled 1,200 local workers to earn supplementary income without the constraints of traditional employment.

The workers' petition tells a different story. It alleges that the platforms use algorithmic rating systems to pressure workers into accepting low-wage jobs, that they charge workers fees for training and certification, and that they exercise de facto control over how workers present themselves and interact with tourists. A dive guide named Carlos Menéndez, who works through two platforms simultaneously, told the committee that his income has fallen 22 percent in three years even as the volume of tourists visiting Costa Mar has grown.

The committee is expected to issue preliminary findings in September. If the evidence supports the workers' claims, the Regional Assembly could draft legislation requiring platforms to disclose their algorithmic practices, cap commission rates, or reclassify certain workers as employees. Any such law would face a federal legal question: whether regional labor law can bind digital platforms that operate across multiple regions and internationally.