By 2029-2030, India will be home to more than 23.5 million gig workers, as per NITI Aayog’s India’s Booming Gig and Platform Economy report.
Thanks to the technical and quick commerce industries, the number of people employed as gig workers has been increasing. While these forms of employment provide many benefits, they also restrict the legal relationship between an employer and its employees.
While the legal responsibilities and obligations surrounding full-time workers have often been clear, many gig workers remain in a state of uncertainty. Just what kind of benefits are they eligible for, and what do their employers owe them?
These are the questions that have made the legal framework for gig workers more important than ever.
Continued hurdles for the gig workers in India
While significant strides have been made to improve the social security of gig workers, there are still many challenges that need to be overcome.
Despite legal efforts, many gig workers can still not avail themselves of the full range of social security benefits.
As per a 2024 report by the International Labour Organization (ILO), 71.4% of gig workers in india claimed that they don’t receive additional allowances or fringe benefits from the platforms, aside from fuel allowance in some cases and medical insurance.
Read More: Gig Workers in India: What employers can do to overcome the challenges
Undeniably, the platform-based employers play a huge role in what benefits gig workers can and cannot avail. To establish the minimum standard required by these employers, the government of India as well as various states have taken firm steps.
The developing legal framework
With the changes in the composition of India’s workforce, many laws have been introduced and implemented that are meant to keep the interests of gig workers safe. From the national level to the state, change has been imminent and has brought a fresh perspective into the legalities surrounding the new form of talent.
Code on Social Security, 2020
Enacted in September of 2020, the Code on Social Security, 2020, amended and consolidated laws pertaining to the social security of workers within the organised and unorganised sectors.
With the implementation of the Code on Social Security, those within the unorganised sector, including gig workers, were extended benefits, including life insurance and disability insurance, health and maternity benefits, provident insurance, pension and skill upgradation.
This piece of legislation mandated employers to allocate 1 to 2% of their annual turnover towards social security schemes for their gig and platform workers.
Rajasthan Platform-Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Act, 2023
With the Rajasthan Platform-Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Act, 2023, the state government of Rajasthan mandated the registration of all gig workers with the state government. This was done in an effort to maintain their employment history and track what they are owed as per the social security schemes.
The law also established a Platform-Based Gig Workers Welfare Board to ensure that the grievances of the gig workers are heard properly. It also instructed employers to contribute 1 to 2% of their turnover to the Platform-Based Gig Workers Fund and Welfare Fee.
Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Bill, 2024
In April 2025, the Karnataka state cabinet cleared the Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Bill, 2024. Like the previously mentioned pieces of law, this bill also aims to elevate the social security options of gig workers.
The bill proposes the implementation of welfare fees equal to 1 to 5% of payouts to the worker for each transaction. It also includes the idea of a gig workers’ welfare board and a Payment and Welfare Fee Verification System (PWFVS) meant to make the process of welfare fees collection more transparent.
When the judiciary comes through
Courts across India have also come through for gig workers in recent times. The decision made by judges in cases involving gig workers has provided necessary precedents to employers, employees, and lawmakers.
Delhi Supreme Court and the IFAT petition
The Indian Federation of App Based Transport Workers (IFAT) filed a petition in 2021. In the petition, IFAT requested that gig workers be recognised as “unorganised workers” and receive social security benefits.
After hearing IFAT in November 2024 and February 2025, the Delhi Supreme Court directed the Union Government to provide a timeline for the implementation of the Code on Social Security. This was done to provide gig workers with the benefits promised by the code as soon as possible.
Karnataka High Court Ruling of 2024
In September 2024, the Karnataka High Court confirmed that gig workers like Ola drivers do fall under the definition of employees as per the PoSH Act (the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013).
The case which set the precedent involved a female cab rider who claimed that an Ola cab driver sexually harassed her.
When she tried to file a complaint with Ola’s Internal Complaints Committee (ICC), the company claimed that it did not have an actionable employer-employee relationship with its drivers and hence did not have jurisdiction over them.
Government initiatives for gig workers
Gig workers are becoming prominent contributors to the Indian economy, and the governments at the national and state levels have launched various initiatives to help gig workers further.
e-Shram Portal
Launched on August 26, 2021, the e-Shram Portal is an initiative by the Union Government of India to create a national database of workers in the unorganised sector. As of March 3, 2025, 30.68 crore workers had already registered on the platform. Out of them, 53.68% are female workers.
Who is eligible?
As per the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the e-shram portal is available for unorganised workers, which includes:
- Any home-based worker, self-employed worker or wage worker in the unorganised sector
- Any worker in the organised sector who is not a member of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) or the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC)
- Should not be a government employee.
The unorganised employee must:
- Be between 16 and 59 years of age
- Not be a member of EPFO/ESIC or the National Pension System (NPS)
Requirements for registration
To register on the e-shram portal, one must have:
- An Aadhaar Number
- A mobile number linked with Aadhaar
- A savings bank account number with the IFSC code
How to register yourself on the e-shram portal?
Step 1: Visit the e-Shram portal. Click on the ‘Register on eShram’ option under the ‘One Stop Solution’ tab.
Step 2: Enter the Aadhaar-linked mobile number, captcha code, select if you are an active member of EPFO and ESCI and submit the one-time password (OTP) using the ‘Send OTP’ button.
Step 3: Complete the Aadhaar e-KYC form. Select Register using Aadhaar number, enter your Aadhaar number, select OTP, enter the captcha code, agree to the consent and click ‘Submit’.
Step 4: Enter the OTP, captcha code and click ‘Validate’.
Step 5. Confirm the personal details that appear on the screen and click ‘Continue to Enter Other Details’.
Step 6: Enter the personal information, address, educational qualification, occupation, skills and bank details. Select the self-declaration and click ‘Submit.’
Step 7: The e-Shram card is generated and displayed on the screen. Click on the ‘Download’ option to download the e-Shram card.
e-Scooter Subsidy
In March 2025, the state government of Tamil Nadu announced that it would offer a subsidy of ₹20,000 to select gig-workers for buying e-scooters. The move was made in light of the increasing registration of young people to deliver food and groceries for online platforms.
To avail the subsidy, the workers must be registered with the Gig Workers Welfare Board.
“A new scheme will be launched to support the livelihood of workers registered with the welfare board by providing a subsidy of Rs 20,000 each to 2,000 internet-based service workers for purchasing a new electric vehicle (e-scooter),” Tamil Nadu’s Finance Minister Thangam Thenarasu shared in March 2025.
In the end…
While the legal protections surrounding gig workers in India still have a long way to go, strides have been made to make the situation better. While the government is taking initiatives to safeguard the social security interests of these workers, their employers also need to step up to the plate.
Whether as an employer or a consumer of the services of workers of the unorganised sector, we need to evaluate our policies and actions towards them. Given their necessary position within the Indian economy and our lives, it is high time that we safeguard their interests to the best of our capabilities.