Gig Workers And Gig Economy Flashcards
Q. Define Gig economy and Gig worker .
Ans : * Gig economy is a free market system in which temporary positions are common and organisations contract with independent workers for short-term engagements.
* Gig workers are those engaged in livelihood outside the traditional employer-employee arrangement.
1. Platform gig worker - Working on online software, apps, or digital platforms such as food aggregators platforms like zomato, swiggy, ola etc.
2. Non-platform Gig workers- generally casual waged and own-account workers in the conventional sector, engaged part-time or full time.
Q. What are some Datas related to the Gig economy and Gig workers ?
Ans : 1. 77 lakh workers in India were engaged in the Gig economy (As per NITI Aayog 2020-21) .
2. 47% in medium skilled jobs , 22% in high skilled jobs and 31% in low skilled jobs .
3. 36% women participation in 2022 (18% in 2018)
4. 8 fold increase of Youth participation ( between 19-20)
Q. What are some of the reasons for the increase in the Gig economy ?
Ans : 1. Widespread access to the internet.
2. Rapid growth in the start-up ecosystem.
3. Interoperability of the platforms
4. Rising demand for contractual employees.
Q. What is the significance of the Gig economy ?
Ans : 1. To the country : Creates employment, serves the needs of various, sectors and sections of the society, helps startups to thrive and boosts the economy .
2. To employees : Provides flexibility in working, enables remote working, provides work-life balance.
3. To Employers : Low cost labour, low compliance cost, diverse pool of labour.
4. To consumers : Provides personalised services, saves time and money .
Q. What are some challenges in Gig economy ?
Ans : 1. Job insecurity: financial instability and difficulty for workers to plan for the future
2. Income instability : irregular and unpredictable nature of gig work
3. Lack of legal protection and social security : Outside labour laws, health insurance, retirement benefits, and paid leave.
4. Unequal bargaining power.
5. Training and upskilling : often have limited opportunities for upskilling and career advancement.
6. Social stigma : Also, lack of recognition for their work.
Q. What are some existing frameworks in India for the Gig economy ?
Ans : 1. The code on Wages, 2019 : provides universal minimum wage and floor wage across organised and unorganised sectors, including gig workers.
2. The code on social security, 2020 : MoLE recognises gig and platform workers through this code.
* Code calls for framing suitable social security schemes for gig workers by central and state governments.
3. E-Shram Portal : To create a database of unorganised workers, including gig workers .
Q. What are some “way forwards” for Gig workers and Gig economy?
Ans : 1. Recognition of Gig workers under labour laws.
2. Provide assured minimum earnings.
3. Provide them with social security covers .
4. Implementation of code on social security 2020.
5. Providing access to finance .
