While India’s gig economy is booming, with number of workers rising 55 per cent to 1.2 crore in the fiscal year 2025 from 77 lakh in FY21, income volatility remains a key concern. Every four in ten workers in the gig workforce earn less than Rs 15,000 a month, as highlighted by the Economic Survey 2025-26.
“Income volatility persists, leading to challenges in accessing credit. Financial inclusion also lags behind for gig workers,” the survey noted, adding that the sector has ‘thin-file’ credit access, which remains a concern.
The earnings by the workers of the gig economy, encompassing delivery, ridesharing, and freelancing, is far less than what the founder of Eternal Deepinder Goyal claimed to be on his platform. “But if someone were to work for 10 hours per day, 26 days per month, this translates to ~around Rs 26,500 per month in gross earnings. After accounting for fuel and maintenance (around 20 per cent), the net earnings for the partner are around Rs 21,000 per month,” Goyal said in post on X on 2 January 2026.
However, the survey also highlighted that now representing over 2 per cent of the total workforce in India, growth of gig workers outpaces overall employment, with non-agricultural gigs projected to constitute 6.7 per cent of the workforce by 2029-30, contributing Rs 2.35 lakh crore to the gross domestic product. Ecommerce accounts for around 37 per cent of the gig workforce, followed by logistics with 15 per cent, as per the Indian Flexi Staffing Industry report 2025- sectoral and state analysis.
“While the sector is witnessing increased participation, this statistic indicates a worrying trend of income instability and inadequate financial security for a large portion of gig workers. This financial strain hampers their ability to invest in skills or save for emergencies, ultimately affecting their standard of living. Furthermore, it raises concerns about worker exploitation in a sector that is often touted for its flexibility and independence,” Suchita Dutta, Executive Director, Indian Staffing Federation (ISF), told BW Businessworld.
Key Concerns And Worker Vulnerability
The survey pointed out that platform algorithms control work allocation, performance monitoring, wages, and supply-demand matching, raising concerns about algorithmic biases and burnout. Limited skilling and fears of job losses due to technological advances such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) add to worker vulnerability.
Reacting to the income stress highlighted by the survey, Nirmal Gorana, National Coordinator, Gig and Platform Service Workers Union (GIPSWU), stated “The claim made by former Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal has been proven completely false. By making such false claims, Deepinder Goyal not only attempted to mislead the government but also committed an injustice against gig workers; this is why he suddenly resigned from his position. Approximately 4.8 million gig workers earning less than Rs 15,000 per month fall under forced labour.”
The survery noted that strengthening social security, such as provident fund, insurance and maternity benefits for this sector, is essential. It added that the Labour Codes have formally recognised gig and platform workers, expanding social security, welfare funds, and benefit portability. “Going forward, ensuring algorithmic transparency and promoting worker-friendly practices will be crucial,” the survey added.
The 'thin-file' credit access profile in the gig workforce poses a significant barrier to financial inclusion, preventing many from securing loans or financial products that could enhance their economic stability. Such profiles, lacking formal income proof, severely limit credit access, exacerbating financial exclusion amid irregular earnings. To address this, Dutta added that we need tailored approaches that consider the unique earnings patterns of gig workers.
Full-time Work With Little Mobility
India’s fast-growing gig economy is increasingly functioning as a full-time labour market rather than a source of flexible or transitional work, leaving millions of young workers stuck in low-paying roles with little chance of upward mobility, according to a report by Primus Partners.
Based on a survey of more than 1,100 platform-based gig workers across major Indian cities, the report finds that around 61 per cent of gig workers work eight hours or more a day, while 43 per cent work all seven days of the week. More than half are “effectively full-time”, combining long hours with at least five-and-a-half working days each week.
Average monthly earnings remain modest at around Rs 22,500, with income growth driven mainly by longer workweeks rather than promotions or skill-based progression, the report said. Moving from a five-day to a six-day week adds roughly Rs 2,500 per month, underscoring what the authors describe as “grind-based growth”.
Only about 15 per cent of workers saw gig work as a pathway to other opportunities. Among workers in their twenties with more than four years in the same gig, that share fell to around 3 per cent, with most describing gig work as a long-term career or a financial necessity.
Policymakers Raise Concerns
Rajya Sabha MP Kartikeya Sharma raised key questions in Parliament on the scale of employment in the gig economy, seeking clarity on private participation, industrial depth and worker welfare as part of India’s evolving economic landscape.
During Question Hour, Sharma raised the issue of employment generation in India’s gig economy by asking a supplementary question to a starred parliamentary question related to labour and employment, the official release said. He sought clarity on whether the Labour Ministry has assessed the number of jobs created through digital and platform-based employment models amid the rapid expansion of app-based services.
Replying to the House, Labour and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the gig economy represents a new and emerging format of employment driven by digital platforms. He cited official estimates indicating that about 1.5 crore to 2.5 crore workers are currently engaged as gig and platform workers in India.
Mandaviya said India has provided the world’s first statutory definition of gig and platform workers and formally recognised this category within its labour framework. He added that gig and platform workers have been brought under the ambit of the four new Labour Codes, enabling access to social security and health-related benefits.
ISF suggests worker-friendly norms like transparent incentives, rest mandates, and AI ethics guidelines to curb platform dominance. Enforcing labour codes for social security, portable benefits (health, pension) and minimum earnings ensures dignity, Dutta pointed out.
Earlier, shedding light on the ‘pain and misery’ of India’s gig workers, Raghav Chadha, an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha member, has demanded regulations on quick commerce and app-based delivery and service businesses, in favour of gig workers.
While speaking in Parliament, the MP pointed out that although the official definition refers to them as gig workers, he calls them the invisible wheels of the Indian economy. He noted that these workers deserve dignity, protection and fair pay.
“I am speaking about the delivery boys of Swiggy and Zomato, drivers of Ola and Uber, riders of Blinkit and Zepto, plumbers and beauticians of Urban Company. Today, many ecommerce, Insta-delivery apps and companies have upped their valuations and become unicorns, but the conditions of these gig workers are worse off than daily wage labourers,” he added.
As platforms scale and valuations grow, the focus must now shift from opportunity creation to income stability, social security and fair algorithmic practices. The next phase of India’s gig economy story will not be defined by how many jobs it creates, but by whether those jobs can offer dignity, predictability and a pathway to economic progress rather than a cycle of grind-based survival. |
