Govt hosts first-ever meet with gig workers

New Delhi: In a historic move aimed at improving the welfare of gig and platform-based workers, Delhi's Minister of Labour, Kapil Mishra, chaired the first-ever meeting with gig workers and representatives from leading platform companies, including Swiggy, Zomato, Blinkit, Uber, UrbanClap, and BigBasket. The meeting, held at the Delhi Secretariat, focused on ensuring social, medical, and economic security for workers in the gig economy.

The session served as a critical forum for gig workers to share their challenges directly with government officials and platform representatives. Workers raised concerns about long working hours, insufficient compensation, and the absence of a proper grievance redressal mechanism — issues that continue to affect their livelihoods and well-being.

Minister Kapil Mishra assured attendees of the Delhi government’s strong commitment to addressing these challenges. “All these problems will be addressed with the cooperation of platforms and aggregators,” said Mishra. “The government will constitute a welfare board for gig and platform workers and develop schemes focused on their welfare. I also want to reassure platform companies that they will not face any undue harassment from inspectors or officials.”

Highlighting the government's proactive stance, the minister announced a dedicated allocation of ₹10 crore in the state budget to support gig workers' welfare initiatives.