Abhinav Joshi

Source- Bizsolindia Pvt. Ltd.

India’s booming gig and platform economy continues to operate with restricted social and legal safeguards. This article aims to examine whether the Union Budget 2026-27 makes any meaningful advancement in areas of social security of gig workers, allocations to the Welfare Board as mentioned in the Codes on Social Security, 2020, welfare design and accessible protection mechanisms, while questioning the role of platform companies in ensuring accountability and the welfare of workers.

Introduction

The rapid expansion of food and grocery delivery platforms such as Zomato and Swiggy have reshaped urban labour markets in India. Despite the humorous Blinkit hoardings highlighting what the nation shopped the most in one year, or Zomato’s regular pop-up notifications attracting

the consumers to order more from the platform, there lies a deeply exploitative nature of employment that is meted out to the gig workers. In absence of any legislation on minimum wages, regulated hours of work, social security codes that are existent on papers and a rapidly growing economy that demands you to get along, the gig workers have no option but to succumb to their situations. While the world celebrated the coming of a new year, the gig workers protested for their rights, logging out of their respective platforms. The nationwide strike made its way to the Parliament when it caught the attention of Mr. Raghav Chaddha, a Member of Parliament, who from the floor of the Parliament called out the exploitative nature of work being performed by the gig and the platform workers today.¹

The silver lining lies in the fact that the State for the first time unequivocally called out the exploitative nature of the quick delivery models, putting a stop to them. The approach was lauded by labour unions, domain experts and the workers themselves, and further invoked enthusiasm and hope from the Union Budget for the Financial Year 2026-27. It is in this backdrop that the Budget was viewed with much hope and expectation for the gig and platform workers.²

Defining and Measuring the Gig Workforce

The gig workers were first defined by the Code on Social Security, 2020, which is a central law that aims to extend social security benefits to unorganized, gig, and platform workers across India. The legislation defines a gig worker as “a person who performs work or participates in a work arrangement and earns from such activities outside of a traditional employer-employee relationship”. A report by NITI Ayog titled, “India’s Booming Gig and Platform Economy”, has

¹ Mukherjee, S. (2026, February 5). Budget 2026 counts gig workers, but stops short of protection | Policy Circle. Policy Circle. https://www.policycircle.org/opinion/budget-2026-gig-workers/

² Ani. (2026, January 13). Ban on 10-minute delivery: CAIT welcomes move to protect gig workers – The Tribune. The Tribune.

https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/business/ban-on-10-minute-delivery-cait-welcomes-move-to-protect- gig-workers/

projected it to reach 23.5 million by 2029-30, up from 7.7 million in 2020-21.³ However, the attempts at enumerating the gig workers through surveys remain inefficient. The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), continues to register the gig workers under categories such as ‘self-employed’, ‘own-account workers’, or ‘casual labour’. This poses significant challenges while framing policies for the gig workers as mere budgetary allocations without evolved and up-to-date statistical mechanisms would result in ineffective policy solutions.⁴

The Gap between Policy and Protection

The Union Budget fell short of meeting the expectations of the workers involved in the gig economy. The current Union Budget draws our attention to the striking gap between the legal recognition and the actual fiscal assistance for the workers who sustain this sector. One of the major expectations from the budget was that it would effectuate the social security safeguards for the gig workers through appropriate funding. But in reality it just reinstated its earlier policies such as health coverage under Ayushman Bharat and registration through e-Shram portal, without allocating any new fiscal support for their welfare. Therefore, social security protection still remains a far-fetched ambition for the gig workers as it is a mere reality on paper without any legal enforcement⁵.

The budget also highlights the absence of addressing the concern related to income instability that workers in this sector face due to irregular demand cycles and delayed payments. It fails to incorporate a legal framework that could regulate or set the bar for minimum wages earned by an informal worker. This makes the labor force solely dependent upon the platform which can unilaterally alter their incentives, commission and daily targets. While the Economic Survey 2025-26 recognises the urgency of skill based programmes for gig workers, the budget formally fails to accommodate this urgency and only takes into account the youth skilling programmes

3 Impri. (2026, February 24). Employment, Livelihoods and Union Budget 2026-27 – IMPRI INSIGHTS.

IMPRI INSIGHTS. https://impriinsights.in/employment-livelihoods-and-union-budget-2026-27/

4 Narayan, D. (2025b, October 25). Are gig workers a part of India’s labour data? The Hindu. https://thehindu.com/business/Economy/are-gig-workers-a-part-of-indias-labour-data/article69763998.ec e

5 Ministry of Labour and Employment. (n.d.). Notes on demands for grants, 2026-2027. In Ministry of Labour and Employment (pp. 224–226). https://www.indiabudget.gov.in/doc/eb/sbe64.pdf

concerning developing technologies and artificial intelligence. Hence, making the gig workers more prone to economic vulnerabilities.⁶

Other major concerns associated with the gig economy are the absence of meaningful heed to the working environment and the lack of effective regulatory framework governing platform labour. Delivery partners and riders engaged with various platforms have to spend longer hours outdoors and directly bear the brunt of adverse weather conditions along with occupational risks. In a report published by Telangana Gig and Platform Workers’ Union (TGPWU), which surveyed a total of 166 workers, only eleven respondents confirmed the availability of heat-protective gear, while just 31% out of the total respondents verified having access to clean washrooms. Yet, the budget has failed to acknowledge any public investment in improving the working condition of the gig workers specifically.⁷ Moreover, it also failed to allocate funds for enhancing the enforcement mechanism for the labour codes which could help empower the gig workers by making aggregators liable for the fair labour practices. An Effective Enforcement mechanism encompasses enhancing grievances redressal system, inspection rules and monitoring mechanism within the labour department. In the absence of such a mechanism, the gig economy will be exposed to greater exploitation in the face of algorithmic control and arbitrary decision making by the aggregators.⁸

The Codes on Social Security of 2020 propose the formation of a National Social Security Board focused on formulating and monitoring welfare schemes for unorganized, gig, and platform workers. As per the Codes, the Board would recommend schemes for life/disability cover, health benefits, and old-age protection.The Board is mostly just a symbol because there is

6 Mukherjee, S. (2026, February 5). Budget 2026 counts gig workers, but stops short of protection | Policy Circle. Policy Circle. https://www.policycircle.org/opinion/budget-2026-gig-workers/

7 Impact of extreme heat on gig workers: A survey report – Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union. (2024, August 17).

https://tgpwu.org/2024/08/17/impact-of-extreme-heat-on-gig-workers-a-survey-report

8 Das, N. (2026, February 11). India’s gig workforce is expanding rapidly, but the policy response still reflects a gap between recognition and real commitment. LinkedIn.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/niteshdas8718_gig-workers-in-the-budget-2026-27-activity-7427247518 247428096-UBKg/

no budget or plan for how to put it into action. This makes it less effective as a way to protect gig and platform workers. The composition of the Board is as depicted below in Table1:

Member/Representative Group	Number of Members	Details
Aggregators	5	Nominated by the Central Government.
Gig & Platform Workers	5	Nominated by the Central Government.
State Governments	5	Representatives selected by rotation.
Expert Members	Not Specified	Appointed as deemed appropriate by the Central Government.
Ex-Officio Officials	3	Includes the Director General of the ESI Corporation , the Central Provident Fund Commissioner , and the Joint Secretary (Ministry of Labour & Employment), who also serves as the Member Secretary.

Table 1: Composition of the National Social Security Board as mentioned in the Codes on Social Security, 2020 for gig and platform workers

The Path Forward

The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) continues to register the gig workers under categories such as ‘self-employed’, ‘own-account workers’, or ‘casual labour’. This poses significant challenges while framing policies for the gig workers, as mere budgetary allocations without evolved and up-to-date statistical mechanisms would result in ineffective policy solutions. The first and foremost priority of any policy that aims to empower the gig workers should be to integrate the workers in the wider ambit of social security schemes, as promised under the new Labour Codes of 2020. Furthermore, several critical issues persist such as those related to

algorithmic controls, arbitrary account suspensions, opaque payment systems, exploitative and unsafe working conditions- topped with little to no accountability witnessed from the platforms’ end. Details on creating a dedicated fund as part of the law for gig and platform workers to cover life, disability, health and old-age benefits are still awaited, which is a key component in safeguarding the rights of the gig workers, while holding the platforms accountable for the same.

Therefore, rule-making must ensure independent worker representation, diversify and stabilize funding, require algorithmic audits and platform data-sharing, and implement robust monitoring in order for the policy to be effective. Absent these measures, the statute’s impact will remain limited; with them, it could become a scalable model for protecting gig workers.

Key takeaways:

• India’s gig and platform economy is undergoing rapid expansion, still workers lack basic social security provisions, fair wages and safe working conditions.
• The Budget of 2026-27 largely reiterates the existing provisions, while any funding to the Social Security Board was absent.
• The questions of income stability, platform accountability and grievance redressal mechanisms still loom large over the gig and platform workers of the nation.

Conclusion

The Union Budget, while recognizing the unorganised workers through schemes like e-Shram Portal, largely remains silent on providing tangible policy solutions such as social security benefits. In order to achieve a more dignified and secure workspace for the workers, the Government must move beyond empty promises and depict its commitment to equality and fairness through enforcing the provisions chalked out in the Social Security Codes, 2020⁹ for the gig and platform workers. Given the backdrop and the complexity of the issue, both the central and state governments need to reconsider whether the policies actually elevate the social standing of the gig workers or act as a mere band-aid?

9 Review, I. D. (2026, January 20). What the data reveals about India’s gig workers | IDR. India Development Review.

https://idronline.org/article/livelihoods/what-the-data-reveals-about-indias-gig-workers

References

1. Mukherjee, S. (2026, February 5). Budget 2026 counts gig workers, but stops short of protection | Policy Circle. Policy Circle. https://www.policycircle.org/opinion/budget-2026-gig-workers/
2. Impri. (2026, February 24). Employment, Livelihoods and Union Budget 2026-27 – IMPRI INSIGHTS.                                                          IMPRI                                                                              INSIGHTS.

https://impriinsights.in/employment-livelihoods-and-union-budget-2026-27

• Himanshu Nitnaware. (2026, January 29). Economic Survey 2026: India’s fast-growing gig economy needs       an                       overhaul.                       Down                       to                                Earth. https://www.downtoearth.org.in/economy/economic-survey-2026-indias-fast-growing-gig-economy-ne eds-an-overhaul
• Impact of extreme heat on gig workers: A survey report – Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union. (2024,                                                                     August                                                                17). https://tgpwu.org/2024/08/17/impact-of-extreme-heat-on-gig-workers-a-survey-report/
• Ministry of Labour and Employment. (n.d.). Notes on demands for grants, 2026-2027. In Ministry of Labour and Employment (pp. 224–226). https://www.indiabudget.gov.in/doc/eb/sbe64.pdf
• Das, N. (2026, February 11). India’s gig workforce is expanding rapidly, but the policy response still reflects a gap between recognition and real commitment. LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/niteshdas8718_gig-workers-in-the-budget-2026-27-activity-74272475 18247428096-UBKg/
• Factsheet details: (n.d.). https://www.pib.gov.in/FactsheetDetails.aspx?Id=150473®=3&lang=2

• Review, I. D. (2026, January 20). What the data reveals about India’s gig workers | IDR. India Development Review.

https://idronline.org/article/livelihoods/what-the-data-reveals-about-indias-gig-workers

• Narayan, D. (2025b, October 25). Are gig workers a part of India’s labour data? The Hindu. https://thehindu.com/business/Economy/are-gig-workers-a-part-of-indias-labour-data/article6976 3998.ece

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