Online food and grocery delivery services across India could face significant disruptions today, December 31st, as approximately 100,000 gig workers, including delivery and taxi drivers, have announced a nationwide strike. The industrial action, spearheaded by various unions, aims to highlight alleged exploitation by app-based companies and demand basic legal rights for workers.
Reasons Behind the Nationwide Protest
The Gig and Platform Services Workers Union (GIPSWU) has formally addressed Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, urging immediate intervention in the dispute. The union has issued a warning, suggesting that if their demands are not met, the country’s economic growth could also be impacted. This follows a previous symbolic strike on December 25th, which saw participation from around 40,000 workers.
Several grievances underpin the current strike:
- A primary demand is for social security and welfare funds. Despite government regulations, many states reportedly still do not provide facilities such as pensions, health insurance, or Provident Fund benefits to these workers.
- Workers report a substantial decline in earnings and incentives. Payments per order have reportedly dropped from an earlier range of ₹40-₹60 to between ₹15-₹25.
- Concerns about poor working conditions and the intense pressure for 10-minute deliveries are also prevalent. Workers allege that this pressure from quick commerce apps, such as Blinkit and Zepto, significantly increases their risk of accidents.
- Arbitrary blocking of worker IDs by companies, without prior notice or valid reasons, is another major complaint, leading to sudden job losses.
- The legal classification of gig workers is a contentious issue. Currently recognized as ‘partners’ rather than ’employees,’ unions are advocating for their formal recognition as employees.
Anticipated Impact on Services
The strike, supported by regional organizations in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi-NCR, West Bengal, and Tamil Nadu, is expected to heavily affect major cities including Delhi and Mumbai. Unions assert that over 100,000 delivery workers will either log out of apps or significantly reduce their work activity during the protest.
While the strike is predicted to have the most significant impact on food delivery and quick commerce applications, e-commerce companies are expected to be less affected due to their robust backup delivery networks. Elara Capital’s Executive Vice President, Karan Taurani, suggested that while some workers might choose to continue working due to higher earnings during this period, the overall order volume in South Indian metro cities could decline by 10-20%. Across the nation, the combined impact of the December 25th and December 31st strikes is estimated to reduce delivery platforms’ total revenue by approximately 0.3% to 0.7%.
