India has given legal status to millions of gig and platform workers under its newly implemented labor law, marking a milestone for the country’s delivery, ride-hailing and e-commerce workforce — yet while the benefits are still unclear and platforms are beginning to assess their obligations, access to social security remains out of reach.
The recognition comes from the Social Security Code — one of the four labor laws of the Government of India has been executed Friday – the first parliament in more than five years Passed them in 2020. It is the only part of the new framework that addresses gig and platform workers, as the other three codes — covering wages, industrial “India’s gig workers” relations and workplace safety — do not extend guaranteed minimum earnings, employment protection or working conditions to this rapidly expanding workforce.
India’s gig workers
India has one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing gig economies, with over 12 million people delivering food, driving ride-hailing cabs, picking e-commerce packages and performing other on-demand services for digital platforms, according to industry estimates. The sector has become an important source of employment, particularly for young and migrant workers as the formal job market closes, and is projected to expand further as companies scale logistics, retail and hyperlocal delivery.
From Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart to Indian quick-delivery apps such as Swiggy, Eternal’s Blinkit, and Zepto, as well as ride-hailing companies including Uber, Ola, and Rapido, rely on gig workers to run their businesses in the South Asian country — the world’s second-largest smartphone market and after China. Yet despite powering some “India’s gig workers” of India’s valuable tech businesses, most gig workers work outside traditional labor protections and lack access to basic social security.
The purpose of the newly implemented labor law is that the statute defines gig and platform workers and requires aggregators such as food-delivery and ride-hailing platforms to contribute 1-2% of their annual revenue (capped at 5% of payments made to such workers) to a government-run social security fund. But the details remain unclear: exactly what benefits will be offered, how workers will access them and how contributions “India’s gig workers” will be tracked across multiple platforms and when payouts will begin, all remain unclear, raising concerns that meaningful protections could take years to materialize.
D Social Security Code Schemes like state insurance of employees, provident fund, and government-backed insurance create a legal framework for gig workers. However, the scope of these benefits — including eligibility, contribution levels and delivery mechanism — remains unclear and will depend on future rules and scheme notifications.
A key part of the framework is the creation of Social Security Boards at both the central and state levels, tasked with designing and overseeing welfare schemes for gig and platform workers. The central board must include five representatives of gig and platform workers and five representatives of aggregators, all nominated by the government, besides senior officials, experts and state representatives, according to the code. But there is little “India’s gig workers” clarity about how decisions will be made, how much influence worker representatives will actually have, or ultimately control funding and benefit distribution decisions.
“We have to wait and see what exactly the government has in mind in implementing the four codes and what it expects for gig workers,” said Balaji Parthasarathy, a professor at IIIT Bangalore and principal investigator of the FairWork India project. And then we have to see what the states translate on the ground.”
Parthasarathy points out that because labor policy in India is divided between the federal and state governments – listed in the list “concurrent list” State Governments are responsible for designing, notifying and administering a number of schemes required to implement the Social Security Code for Gig Workers – of the Indian Constitution.
India’s gig workers
This raises the possibility of unequal access, as some states move quickly to establish social security boards and implement mechanisms, while others delay or derail the effort due to political or financial constraints. A recent example “India’s gig workers” is that of Rajasthan The law has been suspended since its passage in 2023and Karnataka’s Gig Workers Act, which was soon implemented Clearing the state assembly — underscores how protections for workers may ultimately depend on where they live, rather than the law.
Platform companies have publicly welcomed the reform, but are still evaluating what it will require of them. An Amazon India spokesperson told TechCrunch that the company supports the Indian government’s intentions behind the labor overhaul and is evaluating the changes to be introduced. A spokesperson for Zepto said the company welcomes the new labor codes as “a big step towards a clear, simple rule that protects workers while supporting ease of doing business,” adding that the changes will help strengthen social protection for its distribution partners without reducing the flexibility that fast-business operations rely on.
Food delivery firm Eternal, formerly known as Zomato, is one Stock Exchange Filings That the Social Security Code is a step toward more uniform rules and that it doesn’t expect the financial impact to threaten its long-term business.
Still, Aparajita Rana, a partner at corporate law firm AZB & Partners, said the change “will naturally have a financial impact” on India’s e-commerce sector, as employee contributions are now being formalized. It will also create new compliance obligations, requiring companies to ensure all workers in their networks are registered “India’s gig workers” with government-run funds, determine whether individuals are linked to multiple aggregators and how to avoid duplicate benefits, and set up internal complaints mechanisms.
Rana told TechCrunch, “While the law has the right intentions, the structure of gig workers in India is quite novel, and practical challenges to compliance will emerge as the law comes into force.
One of the biggest hurdles for gig workers seeking benefits under the newly implemented law is registration with the Indian government E-Labour PortalLaunched in 2021 as a national database of unorganized workers. There was a portal More than 300,000 platform workers are registered As of the end of August, however, the government estimated the number of gig workers in India to be around 10 million. Trade unions including the “India’s gig workers” Indian Federation of App-based Transport Workers (IFAT), which has more than 70,000 members, are working to help register gig workers so they can access benefits.
Ambika Tandon, a PhD candidate at Cambridge University and associate at the Center of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), said registering on the portal could mean lost wages for gig workers, as they would have to take time to fill in the required details.
“These workers work 16 hours a day,” he told TechCrunch. “They don’t have time to go to the government portal and register.”
CITU is also among the ten major Indian trade unions Call for withdrawal The new labor law comes ahead of nationwide protests planned for Wednesday.
The benefits of registering on the e-labor portal aren’t mandatory for many gig workers, Tandon noted, because the law doesn’t address more “India’s gig workers” immediate concerns like income fluctuations, account suspensions and sudden account closures — issues workers say are far more important than access to insurance or provident fund benefits right now.
Trade unions often organize strikes to push platforms to address these concerns directly. However, such actions can disrupt everyone involved, including consumers, and put workers at greater risk, as they are not paid when striking and may even face termination for participating.
Though social security rules have been put in place now, we are demanding a minimum wage for gig and platform workers and an employer-employee relationship, which the government is yet to determine,” said Shaikh Salahuddin, founder president of the Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union (TGPWU), which has over 10,000 members. “We call on the government to get information from the aggregators and secure their financial contributions to the fund to start providing benefits to workers.”
There is a wide debate over whether gig workers should be considered employees — a question not addressed in the new labor law. The Social Security Code defines gig and platform workers as a separate category, rather than extending the rights and protections that come with employee status. In contrast, market courts and regulatory platforms such as the UK, Spain and New Zealand have moved towards recognizing workers as “India’s gig workers” employees or “workers”, entitled to minimum wages, paid holidays and other benefits. In some US jurisdictions, regulators and courts have pressed for platform workers treated as an employee or similarly protected workers, although many ride-hail and delivery drivers Being classified as an independent contractor.
“With this Act, the Government of India has settled the controversy that these gig workers do not sit within the ambit of employment or other protections,” Tandon said.
India’s labor ministry did not respond to requests for comment.