Beyond the App: Legal Protections for India’s Gig Workforce
Written by Himanshu Verma & Nishka Shah students at Gujarat National Law University (GNLU), Gandhinagar INTRODUCTION As of 2025, there are over 12 million gig workers in India, working for companies such as Zomato, Swiggy, Uber, and Ola, primarily as delivery partners and drivers who are not in a typical employee-employer relationship with the companies. Many workers remain uncertain about their legal status, do they have rights like healthcare, sick leave, or minimum wages. Gig workers are people who work in the gig economy, an economy that is characterised by temporary jobs rather than permanent jobs. The individuals here earn income by performing part-time, flexible or rather freelance jobs usually through digital platforms. Employed on a temporary, contractual basis, they lack rights like minimum wages or paid sick leave. This blog will further delve into the labour laws and the rights to which the gig workers are entitled. UNDERSTANDING THE NUANCES OF THE GIG ECONOMY IN INDIA The rapid rise of digitalisation and widespread internet access has transformed the economic landscape worldwide and has determined the future of labour and employment by laying a solid foundation for the gig economy. The rise of start-ups and increasing consumer demand for quick services like food delivery has created many opportunities for gig workers in customer service roles. The “2021 World Employment and Social Outlook Report”, published by the International Labour Organisation,suggested that the number of digital labour platforms has increased fivefold over the past ten years. As E-commerce is expanding in India, it has become one of the biggest worldwide gig hubs according to the Economic Survey of 2020-2021. By the end of 2029-30, it is projected that the gig workforce in India will rise to 23.5 million including a mix of low, medium and high-skilled jobs, accounting for 6.7% of the non-agricultural workforce and 4.1% of the overall workforce according to the official report of “NITI Aayog (2022)”. The Gig Economy in India is divided into two categories: platform workers and non-platform workers. Platform workers usually provide services to those companies that use online algorithms in order to connect with their customers, such as Zomato, Swiggy, Amazon, etc., working as Delivery partners. Non-platform workers are those who are engaged in temporary or short-term employment, which does not use digital platforms such as daily wage labourers at construction sites. There are many advantages that the gig economy work offers, attracting individuals to such arrangements primarily due to its flexibility and independence. The workers have the right to choose their work schedules, take time off and choose employers based on personal preference, offering work-life balance. This not only helps freelancers to work on multiple projects at the same time and set their rates, but is also a very good platform for those who are seeking additional income. The temporary nature of work, lack of job security and income instability, limited legal protection and lack of social security benefits, etc., are concerning. Gig workers often face a problem of lower pay and long working hours with no paid sick leaves and insufficient safety measures at the workplace. The workers are being tied to an undefined job status, which leads to their exploitation. Moreover, workers who are Ambitious and have a willingness to learn and develop their skills are not provided with that opportunity. Concerns are raised about the labour laws due to the disruption of the traditional employer-employee arrangement caused by the expansion of the gig economy. Traditional employees, contractual workers, informal workers, etc., are usually governed by a set of laws that aim at protecting the rights of various workers working under this category. They get benefits like Minimum wages, paid sick leaves, Bonuses, Employee provident fund and pensions. Gig workers are often excluded from these protections. Important labour laws are created, such as “The Factories Act 1948”, to address the safety and welfare of the factory workers, “The Workmen’s Compensation Act 1923”, which offers compensation to employees or their families in case of any workplace accidents causing death or disability. Furthermore, “the Minimum Wages Act” and “the Trade Unions Act” are established for the benefit of the workers. But all these laws were created keeping traditional workers in mind; thus, the gig workers are not covered under these sections and are not entitled to any benefits under these. Due to a rise in the number of gig workers in the country and after filing many PILs, laws are now being created to Favour the gig workers, to benefit them and provide them with equal benefits. In the case of “Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers (IFAT) v. Union of India”, IFAT filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) at the Supreme Court in September 2021, claiming that gig workers are not considered eligible for social security payments since they are considered independent contractors. The petitioner also claimed that gig workers employed by app-based platforms should be classified as ‘unorganised workers’ and, therefore, be entitled to social security benefits under existing labour laws. The Delhi High Court in the case of “App-based Transport Workers v. Government of NCT of Delhi” The court has instructed the government to grant social security benefits to the individuals working on gig jobs and discovered that gig workers are eligible for social security benefits such as health and disability insurance, and ordered the government to consider the possibility of implementing a social security scheme for gig workers. For the first time, gig workers were given legal legitimacy in “the Code on Social Security”, released in 2020.The legislation put the workers in a separate category and made it compulsory for them to register to qualify to receive social security benefits. Registration was prohibited by law for anyone below the age of 16 or above the age of 60 from joining. There have been a few state-level initiatives to enhance the well-being of gig workers, including “the Rajasthan Platform-Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Act, 2023”. It is the first state-level law in India that targets specifically the gig workers.