Looking On Overall Wellness Of The Gig Economy
Gig economy, as well as the future of employment, have become a popular topic of discussion. The gig economy, broadly defined, involves job arrangements that are closer to "gigs" than traditional types of employment.
In India, the gig economy refers to the tendency of individuals to take up temporary or flexible jobs, often through online platforms such as Uber, Ola, Swiggy and Zomato. This type of work has gained popularity in recent years as it gives workers more flexibility and independence and can be a cost-effective solution for businesses. Mostly after the covid pandemic, people have been more interested in doing a side job, therefore working as cab drivers, delivery partners, online tutors, technicians, freelancers, etc.
Pooja Singh Rathore, Co-founder, Gigzeu said , "The rapidly burgeoning gig workforce is ushering in a new economic revolution globally. India – with its demographic dividend of half-a-billion labor force and the world’s youngest population, rapid urbanisation, widespread adoption of smartphones and associated technology – is the new frontier of this revolution. In this backdrop, this first- of-its-kind report presents comprehensive perspectives and recommendations on the gig-platform economy in India, engaging gig-platform workers in the millions."
Contribution to India's GDP
As uncertainty caused by the pandemic subsided across the country, gig economy emerged as the real job of the future. Companies that had their expansion plans suspended due to the pandemic have begun to expand again, while those that have benefited, such as e-commerce services, are consolidating their control. Also, an increasing proportion of the workforce they hire will be gig workers.
According to the Boston Consulting Group's 2021 report, freelancers have the potential to support up to 90 million jobs in India, or 10 per cent of India's workforce of around 900 million people in the near future. This workforce could contribute up to 1.25 per cent to India's GDP, with huge growth potential.
Hersh Shah, CEO, Institute of Risk Management (IRM), India said, "India’s gig economy is a thriving and booming industry with a workforce that is expected to grow to 23.5 million by 2029-30 and is estimated to contribute an incremental 1.25 per cent to the nation’s GDP. These numbers will only continue to grow because the gig economy uses a task-based approach to work and offers an immense amount of flexibility to workers and companies, addressing long-standing issues such as unemployment and underemployment by creating more opportunities for people across the country. The gig economy also allows people to commercialise their skills into task-based professions."
The gig economy includes a market opportunity characterised by the prevalence of contract or freelance work rather than permanent work. A gig worker is someone who is not tied to any organisation and can work on multiple projects depending on their expertise and availability.
Moonlighting & Gig economy
Moonlighting had been a lit topic in the corporate world within last many months of 2022. The term is used for a person who does a side or part-time job along with his core job to earn extra income. The top industry leaders stood against this act of employees which also led to mass layoffs in different namely organisations. In India if seen, most of the part-time jobs are gig-related. So, can banning or objecting moonlighting affect the gig economy?
Vidyarthi Baddireddy, CEO and Co-founder, PickMyWork said, "If moonlighting were to be restricted, it would likely have a significant impact on part-time work, as many gig workers rely on moonlighting as a way to supplement their income or gain additional experience in their field. Additionally, it becomes more difficult for businesses to find and hire talented gig workers with diverse experience. The overall impact would be dependent on the specific details of the ban or objection and the extent to which it is enforced. It could potentially lead to stricter regulations or limitations on gig work."
However Rathore from Gigzeu on this said, "Majority of gig workers are working in low or medium skill set categories. They are platform workers like drivers, delivery boys etc. They have nothing to do with moonlighting. Moonlighting is more relatable to highly skilled jobs like coders, developers, IT architects etc. It won't have much impact."
Risks & Strategies in gig economy
The gig workers face a lot of risks such as, lack of job security, irregular wages and uncertain employment status, increased stress due to uncertainty related to job regularity and disposable income, and limited access to internet and digital technology.
They have the contractual relationship between the platform owner and the gig employee denies the latter access to many workplace permissions. Also they face, stress due to the pressure of algorithmic management practices and rating-based performance evaluation.
The gig economy has created a new kind of workforce that is often characterised by short-term contracts, flexible hours, and independent work. This has many benefits for both employers and workers, but also comes with certain risks. Shah from IRM said, "The risks facing employers can range from legal issues, confidentiality challenges, reputation damage, and even talent retention problems. Employers can mitigate such risks by promoting transparency, communicating clear policies with dos and don’ts. Employees too should strive to ensure there is no conflict of interest thereby winning the trust of employers. Policies should outline expectations, address conflicts of interest, and provide resources and support. Employers can also implement a fair revenue-sharing model in case an employee avails of an opportunity outside the organisation due to the reputation and brand equity associated with the company they work for."
Gig economy also faces lack of different needs and facilities. Although there has been a lot of movement when it comes to the gig economy in terms of improving standards for the gig workers and providing a better cultural environment for gig workers to work. Rathore said that some basic prerequisites that are essential for the growth of gig workers in India are:
• Platform-led models of skilling and job creation need to be promoted for the gig and platform sector. Platforms can collaborate with the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and the National Skill Development Corporation. (NSDC) to nurture skilled workers and micro-entrepreneurship.
• Transformational upskilling for workers presently engaged in the informal sector in trades such as construction, driving and other services can create avenues for horizontal and vertical mobility for workers to take up jobs in the gig and platform sector, empowering them to augment their earnings.
• Platforms can also enable the creation of potential “Skill Certificates” or “Skill Passports” for workers that platform businesses can provide. This can be envisaged as a “Skill Badge” in the platform worker’s online profile, enabling better career progression for them through skill upgradation.
Measures & Policies for gig wellness
The government of India had launched the e-shram portal on August 26, 2021 that allows a person to register based on a self-declaration. Yet no scheme for gig workers has been finalised. Experts say thah there is a need of various measures and policies that can help health, safety and overall wellness of the gig workers.
Rohit Rathi, CEO, KarmaLife said , "There are a number of measures that can be taken to improve the overall wellbeing of gig workers: providing access to benefits such as healthcare and retirement savings, Earned Wage Access (fintech product), protecting workers' rights, promoting work-life balance, fostering a sense of community, and providing training and development opportunities. These efforts can be implemented by governments, businesses, and other stakeholders working together to create a more supportive and sustainable gig economy that benefits both workers and businesses."
Baddireddy from PickMyWork listed down a few measures that needs to be taken for gig workers -
Social protection: Gig workers are often not covered by traditional employment benefits such as health insurance, pension, and paid leave. Providing social protection to gig workers can help them feel more secure and less vulnerable and will really improve the overall health of the industry. It requires special focus from the government and industry in a way that the workers (esp the ones relying on gig work for full-time income) feel protected and the companies don't feel too burdened.
Support services: Many gig workers have difficulty accessing support services such as counselling and mental health services. Having access to support services managed and run by the government with communication and implementation support from the corporates can help gig workers cope with the stress and uncertainty that often comes with gig work.
Programmes: A special emphasis must be placed on women. Through programmes like Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency, their access to microfinance has grown over time (MUDRA). These plans, however, fall short. In order to mobilise and encourage women to acquire finance and develop their own assets that may later be monetised for livelihood development through platform work.
Rathore said, "The current gig economy ecosystem has a few lapses and therefore, the government should build the following policies that can help the gig-economy uplift their work standards."
• The potential and impact of platform led skilling may be included in India’s. National Skill Development Policy, and incorporated in the formulation of all roadmaps and strategies for skill development.
• A Platform India initiative, built on the pillars of accelerating platformisation by simplification and handholding, funding support and incentives, skill development, and social financial inclusion, like the immensely successful Startup India initiative, may be introduced.
• Incentivise Inclusive Businesses: Women led-platforms or platforms that encourage recruitment of women employees and those with disabilities should be incentivized.
• Measures for paid sick leave, health access and insurance needed. On the lines of measures introduced to mitigate the challenges posed by the covid-19 pandemic by platforms businesses, measures for paid sick leave, health access and insurance may be adopted by platforms as a part of their workplace or work- engagement policies for all the workers they engage, round the year. This will have positive implications for offering a social security cover to platform workers engaged by these firms.
• Supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs associated with platforms: As a part of initiatives introduced to mitigate the challenges posed by the covid-19 pandemic, there have been examples of certain platforms extending interest-free business advances and delayed payback periods to protect the gig workers, self-employed and small businesses engaged with them. Kerala State Civil Supplies. Corporation in Kochi partnered with food delivery service Zomato to enlist grains and other essentials on the app. Following such examples, collaborations between platforms and small businesses/entrepreneurs may be encouraged.
