Pathways for legislative interventions for protecting platform-based gig workers in India
The Union Government had notified four labour codes on wages, industrial relations, social security and occupational safety, in 2019-2020, to consolidate the regulatory framework for labour in India. However, these codes fail to adequately address a fast-growing sector of the economy, viz. the on–demand digital platform-based gig economy. Of the four codes, only the Code on Social Security, 2020 includes platform workers within its scope, but it merely requires the state and central governments to devise schemes intended to provide for social security, without imposing any obligations on the platforms or aggregators which engage platform-based gig workers.
In order to address this legislative gap, Vidhi Karnataka and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES), in collaboration with the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers (IFAT), had organised a roundtable discussion on the question of legislative interventions for on-demand platform work in India in October 2022. A background note was prepared for the roundtable discussion, outlining important facets of the platform economy and the inadequacies of the current legal framework.
The three-session roundtable aimed to consult experts and stakeholders such as trade union representatives, researchers, academics, and lawyers, to invite ideas and contributions on the various facets of platform regulation.
- The first session on occupational health, safety, and working conditions explored current labour laws (including the new labour codes) and the scope of their applicability to platform work. The issues highlighted by the discussants included impediments to worker organisation, exploitative work practices, and challenges faced by women platform workers.
- The second session focussed on issues of algorithmic transparency and data protection, particularly the need to shift from mere algorithmic transparency to standard-setting. The issues raised were the overriding of labour protections through control by opaque algorithms, absence of data sharing with workers in relation to the quantum of work and client ratings among others.
- The third and final session discussed global developments in the regulation of platform work, and identified issues such as the difficulties in regularising platform workers through standard employment contracts, barriers to legal reform and the role of the judiciary.
The roundtable brought to light the need for legislative interventions to protect platform workers in India, the most significant example of which is the recent Platform Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Act, 2023 enacted by Rajasthan. Since the labour codes enacted by Parliament do not address platform work, states have the opportunity to pave the way for the protection of platform workers, since ‘labour welfare’ is a concurrent subject under the Constitution.
In July 2023, the Government of Rajasthan sought comments from the public on the Rajasthan Platform Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Bill, 2023 (“the Bill”). This Bill provided for social security security measures for platform based gig workers to be implemented by a Welfare Board.
The passing of this Bill made the State of Rajasthan the first to provide for entitlements and benefits of gig workers through a statute. With the advent and growth of the platform economy, there is an urgent need to protect gig workers who are most vulnerable in this setup. It must be ensured that the working conditions of gig workers do not significantly change merely because the nature of the working relationship in platform economies is different.
While this Bill was a step in the right direction, a number of serious issues remain. Vidhi had submitted comments to the Department of Labour, Government of Rajasthan on the proposed Bill. Our submissions are available here.
The background note, roundtable discussions and submissions made by Vidhi, mentioned in this article, are a part of Vidhi Karnataka’s ongoing research on regulating the gig economy.
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About the Authors
Alok Prasanna Kumar is Co-Founder and Lead, Vidhi Karnataka. His areas of research include judicial reforms, Constitutional law, urban development, and law and technology. He graduated with a B.A. LL.B. (Hons) from the NALSAR University in 2008 and obtained the BCL from the University of Oxford in 2009. He writes a monthly column for the Economic and Political Weekly and has published in the Indian Journal of Constitutional Law and National Law School of India Review apart from media outlets such as The Hindu, Indian Express, Scroll, Quint and Caravan. He has practiced in the Supreme Court and Delhi High Court from the chambers of Mr Mohan Parasaran, and currently also co-hosts the Ganatantra podcast on IVM Podcasts.
Deepa is a Research Fellow at Vidhi, Karnataka. Her research interests lie in the interplay between technology, data and urban policy. Prior to joining Vidhi, Deepa interned with Aapti Institute where she researched on data stewardship models and the governance of non-personal data. She holds an undergraduate degree in law from School of Law, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bangalore.
Sneha was a Senior Resident Fellow at Vidhi, Karnataka working on Urban Development and Municipal Governance. She is interested in feminist urbanism, local governance and socio-legal research. She is a 2015 law graduate from ILS Law College, Pune and subsequently, pursued a postgraduate diploma in liberal studies from Ashoka University. She has previously worked at the Chairman’s office, Quality Council of India on multiple projects with the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Ministry of Railways. Prior to joining Vidhi, she worked at the Hyderabad Urban Lab, researching legal and policy aspects of conservation of urban heritage in the city.
Namratha is a Research Fellow at Vidhi, Karnataka. She graduated with a B.A., LL.B (Hons.) degree from NALSAR University of Law in 2020. She was previously a part of the LAMP Fellowship cohort of 2020-21. Her research interests include Intellectual Property and access to medicines, healthcare, and urban governance. Her other interests include quizzing, photography, and creative writing.
Raghunandan Sriram is Research Fellow at Vidhi Karnataka. His areas of interest include constitutional law and community rights, particularly religious and cultural freedoms, the governance of Scheduled Areas, forest rights, as well as land and water rights. He has previously interned with the Land Rights Initiative at the Centre for Policy Research. He graduated from NALSAR University of Law in 2023 with a B.A., LL.B. (Hons). He enjoys listening to music, singing, reading and travelling.
Varini G is a BA LLB (Batch of 2023) graduate from School of Law, Christ University, Bengaluru. Her primary interests are critical and feminist approaches to the law and governance. She believes in participatory approaches to governance. Her nonacademic interests are reading speculative fiction and exploring different music cultures. In her free time you can find her geeking out on the history of everything possible.