New Union Labour Codes to Impact Millions of Gig Workers in Hyderabad

The Union government of India has issued a gazette notification directing the full operationalisation of four new Labour Codes, initiating a major restructuring of the country's labour framework that will directly affect gig and platform workers, including Swiggy delivery partners in Hyderabad. While the new codes formally recognize these workers, they stop short of guaranteeing them enforceable rights, clear employment status, or secure social benefits.

The restructuring impacts an estimated 7.7 million gig workers across India, a demographic projected to grow to 23.3 million by 2030. Under the Code on Social Security, a "gig worker" is defined as someone working outside a traditional employer-employee relationship, while a "platform worker" is defined as someone accessing work through online platforms.

Companies such as Zomato, Swiggy, Uber, Rapido, and Porter are classified under the code as "aggregators." This classification acknowledges the absence of a traditional employer-employee relationship, which insulates these companies from traditional employer obligations.

According to Dr Chaitanya Pradeep and Lisa Lalu, the codes place gig and platform workers in a standalone category. This excludes them from three of the four labour codes, leaving them without standardized wage floors or fixed-term employment rights.

While Section 109 of the Code on Social Security mandates welfare schemes for life, disability, and accident insurance, Section 114 states that the Central government "may" frame these schemes, making the protections discretionary rather than mandatory.

Furthermore, aggregators must contribute 1% to 2% of their annual turnover to a Social Security Fund. However, the code lacks safeguards to prevent companies from passing these costs down to workers by reducing their earnings.

To qualify for benefits, a worker must earn income for more than 90 days with a single aggregator, or 120 days across multiple aggregators. Only days with active earnings count; time spent logged in and waiting for work does not.

In response to these federal ambiguities, Telangana has drafted its own legislation, the Telangana Platform-Based Gig Workers (Registration, Social Security and Welfare) Act, 2026, to establish dedicated laws and a tripartite governance model for gig workers.