With the rise of internet accessibility and rapid technological advancements, a person’s workplace is no longer restricted to an office cubicles or fixed schedules; Instead, millions of people now depend upon platforms like Swiggy, Zomato, Ola and Uber for their livelihood his has given a rise to blue-collar gig workers which is further organised through digital platforms and not by usual employment relationships. These platforms have transformed conventional employment by providing a more flexible approach; here the employees are independent and have autonomy to decide how they work.  Presently these gig workers have emerged to become an integral part of India’s new age digital economy. It includes providing transportation services, delivery of food or goods, logistics and facilitating a range of other on-demand services.

The narrative set for the growth of this platform-based employment is that it provides workers with freedom and autonomy. It is recognised as a symbol of economic freedom for the workers. The transformation has led to the digital platforms recognising themselves as intermediaries who merely facilitate rather than employers, this approach has presented workers to be seen as independent and autonomous partners who have the freedom to choose their working hours. Flexibility, freedom and the autonomy are the major features of gig economy that have popularised this concept among different group of people be it students, migrants, or even individuals looking to earn through an additional source of income.

However, the narrative of flexibility is still disputed. Advocates of the gig economy support the idea that this form promotes entrepreneurship and the autonomy and freedom ensure inclusion of   markets but critics on the other hand believe that this has now put workers in a more vulnerable position since now the business risk has been shifted from the employers to workers. This debate has led to issues related to social security, income stability and worker autonomy emerging. Now the argument is beyond the gig economy providing workers with opportunities but whether this form safeguard the interests of workers or puts them in risk.

This has led to an important question: whether gig employment genuinely provides workers with the promised flexibility and freedom, or whether it has merely created an illusion of autonomy. While gig employment is promoted as an alternative model of work that offers independence and flexibility, concerns regarding the protection of workers continue to persist. With the expansion of gig employment in India, the need to check whether the current legal framework is enough for the welfare and security of workers or it is merely an illusion to disguise the freedom and flexibility.

WHY GIG WORK ATTRACTS MANY:

One of the many reasons why gig work continues to increase and expand is that it offers great flexibility. Unlike traditional employment, gig work does not necessitate the presence of workers at a certain location for definite hours. Through the digital platforms such as Ola, Uber, Swiggy and Zomato, workers are given autonomy to decide when to work and for how long to work, and there are no strict attendance requirements or targets that the platforms ask workers to achieve. This flexibility attracts people to join gig employment because, unlike the traditional employment here, they are in charge, and they are their own boss.

For a lot of individuals especially students, migrants, or even those who wish to seek an additional source of income, gig employment provides an easy and reachable means of income without any barriers or obligations that comes with the traditional employment. The low barrier to entry and the ease that is associated with platform-based work have greatly contributed to the expansion of India’s gig economy. According to the NITI Aayog report on India’s gig economy, the number of gig workers is expected to grow substantially in the coming years, reflecting the increasing importance of platform-based labour in the country’s economic landscape.

Advocates of the gig economy argue that this style of employment promotes entrepreneurship and active economic participation by encouraging individuals to monetise their skills and labour according to their choice. Unlike the usual employment relationships workers are not formally monitored by a supervisor and are in theory free to choose their work routine. This autonomy and flexibility are seen to be one of the defining characteristics of the gig economy and is often used by the digital platforms to attract workers.

Additionally, the gig economy has played an important role in generating employment opportunities in urban India, mainly in the transportation, logistics and food delivery sector. India being a country where unemployment and underemployment remain a major concern, gig employment has emerged to be one of the important sources of livelihood for many individuals. The facility to be able to choose one’s working arrangement and earn income through flexible employment has thus contributed to the expansion of the gig economy across various socio-economic groups.

However, while these features remain attractive and helped in the continuous growth and expansion of platform-based employment, the presumption that flexibility is always a choice still is debatable. The reality of gig employment is far more than the freedom of deciding one’s working arrangement it also raises concerns regarding the extent of control exercised by the digital platforms over a worker’s livelihood. Therefore, before accepting flexibility as a guarantee of autonomy, it becomes necessary to examine whether gig workers truly exercise independent control over their work or whether this flexibility is shaped by the very platforms on which they depend. 

WHEN FLEXIBILITY BECOMES CONTROL: THE HIDDEN REALITY OF PLATFORM WORK:

Despite being classified as autonomous workers, gig workers still remain subject to significant control by the digital platforms on which these workers depend. Unlike the conventional model where managers and supervisors, platform workers are managed through an automated system and influence earning opportunities. Workers usually don’t have the complete information regarding how this automated system or the algorithm operates, yet these systems play the most crucial role in the whole employment because it directly affects the amount of work the worker receives and earns their income.

Another major concern is the use of a customer rating and ranking system that most of these platforms have introduced, where customers are required to rate the workers based on the service they provide. The main aim of this system is to get feedback, but it also impacts the worker’s future opportunities directly. For instance, if one employee has a lower ranking than the other, the one with the lower ranking would get fewer opportunities, and in certain cases, their account is also suspended from the platform. Due to which, workers a lot of the time feel forced to tolerate unreasonable customer demands and behavior just to maintain a favorable rating to secure their future.

Incentive- based payment structures adopted by many platforms have also been a major factor making the issue even more complicated. Incentive based payment system aims to maximize the efficiency, effectiveness and productivity of workers By providing them monetary and non-monetary benefits bonuses and also giving them an opportunity to maximise their earnings, but it also comes with a condition that these payments and benefits will only be given if the workers complete certain number of  tasks and remain active during peak hours.Often this scheme seems to be for the benefit of the workers and it also appears that workers voluntarily choose them however not all workers voluntarily take part in these schemes some depend purely upon these to earn a reasonable income and survive.

Furthermore, gig employment appears to be autonomous and gig workers are often referred to as independent contractors they are not truly independent or free, they greatly depend upon the digital platforms for opportunities and allocation of assignments which helps them generate income. Even a minor reduction in allocation of assignment directly affects their livelihood. The most common situation when the issue becomes alarming is when a worker’s account is suspended or banned due to reasons like low ranking, poor customer feedback and alleged violation of platform policy. This directly and instantly affect a worker financially and shows how dependent they really are on the digital platform. In many instances, workers are not even told why their account is blocked showing lack of transparency, leaving them with very low or no chance to challenge the suspension.

Therefore, while gig work is promoted as a flexible free and autonomous model in reality the complexity it holds shows that all these promises are mere illusion. The presence of algorithm-based management and automated system clearly depicts the authority digital platforms have over the workers and the with rapid growth this control is also growing stronger. Additionally, the autonomy and flexibility that majorly appeals a person to join gig work is not always genuine and free, hence raising questions regarding the extent to which this freedom is actually genuine or is it just forced flexibility disguised as freedom.

LEGAL IDENTITY CRISIS OF GIG WORKERS: EMPLOYEES OR ENTREPRENEURS:

Legal status and identity of gig workers have to be the uncertainty related to their legal identity. Traditionally, labor law categories workers in two categories, independent contractors or employees. The statute provides employees several benefits and protection, whereas independent contractors are referred to be self-employed individuals who therefore function independently and also bear any risk associated with the business. But with the introduction of gig employment and gig workers have blurred the line regarding this classification and hence concerns have been raised.

Gig workers have been largely classified as independent workers rather than employees by the platforms. However, the classification traditionally given in the labour law makes it unclear. Digital platforms to avoid any responsibility towards the gig workers argue that they only act as intermediaries between the gig workers and the customers.

The most debatable issue has been that gig workers were widely recognised as independent contractors because they are said to be free and autonomous. However, the aspect of gig employment often ignored is that these workers do depend upon digital platforms despite being described as independent. Along with this they are still not legally recognized as employees hence the debate arose. Due to the doubts regarding where they stand, they remain in a grey area and are not granted any benefits that are given to employees under the labour law nor they are completely free.

The rapid growth of gig employment in India have led to the establishment of the Code on Social Security, 2020, this statute legally recognises the existence of gig workers. According to this a gig worker is a person who performs work or participates in a work arrangement and earns from such activities outside of traditional employer-employee relationship. This has led to inclusion of gig workers legally.

However, the primary issue still remains unresolved. The Code on Social Security, 2020, does recognize gig workers but it still is unclear regarding their legal status and protections. Gig workers still remain outside the scope of the labour protection that is generally provided to other workers and hence these gig workers still remain within the grey area because they are still not classified in either of the categories provided by the labour laws.

IS INDIA’S CURRENT FRAMEWORK ENOUGH?

Code on Social Security, 2020 is a huge step towards the recognition and inclusion of gig workers by the law, however the question still remains unanswered if the current framework is enough to safeguard the interests of gig workers. The code does recognise platform workers but this acknowledgement does not mean protection granted. Unlike the conventional employees gig workers do not enjoy the various protections and safeguards granted to employees and hence face several consequences like unfair termination, lack of financial stability and other such regulatory gaps. Consequently, despite being recognised legally they are still in an unclear and vulnerable grey area.

Another significant concern that has been raised is that though the Code recognises and also prescribes adoption of social security schemes for platform workers the application still remains weak. The statue is still unclear regarding to what extent will these platform workers get the benefits and also what would be the mechanism to effectively and efficiently implement these security schemes. Hence several benefits in the Code still exist but only in theory they have very low or no practical implementation. 

Additionally, the current framework is not sufficient in addressing the issues that are new to gig employment. Issues concerning the automated system management, algorithm arbitrary terminations still remain. A lot of the time these digital platforms are the primary source of income for the workers and lack of legal protections lead to serious harm to their financial security.

Hence, even though a significant step has been taken that legally recognises and acknowledges platform and gig workers there are still gaps in efficiency of the legal protections for the workers. The current framework successfully acknowledges the workers but still fails to tackle the challenges regarding practical implementation of protection, thus the workers remain in a vulnerable state and face challenges.

RETHINKING REGULATION:

With the rapid growth and advancement of the gig economy, a structured legal framework is required to maintain balance between the safeguards and flexibility granted. However, the framework should not eliminate the freedom and flexibility granted to the workers but incorporate that flexibility with protection and ensure that workers at least get the protection they deserve even if their medium of employment is different than the traditional employment.

A significant step towards this reform is to ensure that the implementation of safeguards as prescribed by the Code should be effective and efficient. Basic benefits such as access to insurance, minimum wages, paid leave, medical aid, financial stability and other social security schemes should be granted without compromising their flexibility and freedom.

Furthermore, higher transparency regarding the automated system management and algorithm should be present. This would help solve the concern of arbitrary suspension of accounts. There should be a systematic and organized redressal mechanism that states the reason behind the suspensions along with its awareness regarding this system shall be there so that workers can take more responsibility.

Ultimately, the objective of reforms should aim to create a framework that is transparent and shows the reality of these gig workers and keep a check that the workers are provided security and protection regardless of the fact that they fall beyond the categories described by the labour law.

CONCLUSION:

Hence, to conclude gig employment has created great opportunities for workers in India especially due to the flexibility and freedom it provides. Although it is important to understand that not every freedom is consensual. Control by digital platforms in different forms be it automated control, algorithm, customer feedbacks force workers to depend greatly upon the platform. Even though the current framework acknowledges and recognises gig and platform workers there are still gaps in relation to the safeguards provided by the statute hence putting workers in a vulnerable position. 

Flexibility is undoubtedly the most attractive feature of the gig employment which attracts many therefore, the aim for future reforms and framework should be to incorporate the freedom and flexibility along with the basic protection provided to workers, and maintain a balanced system. Until then the question still remains: does the gig employment is truly flexible or its merely forced freedom.

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Author: Arshia Monga

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