Campaign partners:
Amazon India Workers Union (AIWU) and the Gig Workers Association (GigWA)
Addressed to:
CEOs of app-based aggregators including Zomato, Swiggy, Blinkit, Zepto, Ola, Uber, Amazon and others
Ministry of Labour and Employment
Demands:
Recognize extreme heat as an occupational hazard and make worker safety non-negotiable.
Provide climate hazard pay during red-alert heatwave days.
Equip all delivery workers with protective gear such as UV-resistant clothing, caps, hydration kits (ORS), and access to clean water.
Build or designate cooling/rest stations in high-traffic areas where workers can take shade during peak heat.
Implement “no-penalty hours” during high-heat alerts. This will allow workers to slow down or pause without income loss or algorithmic punishment.
Ensure all gig workers are covered by emergency medical insurance for climate-related health impacts.
Revise delivery window to more realistic time targets, i.e. from 8 minutes to at least 30 minutes
Legally recognize gig workers as formal workers to ensure they are entitled to labor rights and protections under existing laws.
Integrate gig workers into national social security schemes, providing them with health insurance, retirement benefits, and paid leave.
As Indian cities face one of the worst heat waves in recorded history, gig workers, who are the backbone of the platform economy, are being exposed to dangerous, often life-threatening temperatures, just to meet a delivery deadline.
Most of them have no access to water, shade, fair wages, functional public toilets or basic rest infrastructure. Their apps keep pinging, relentlessly, in the course of their 10+ hour work days!
Their earnings depend on how fast they deliver – and to meet those expectations, you will find them zooming through traffic, often risking their lives so you get your order within the stipulated, ambitious 8-minute deadline. Taking a small break is often far-fetched as that could impact incentives. A delay or cancellation could mean the worker faces a hefty penalty. And for most of these platform workers, this is their primary source of income, with no fall-back options.
And their wellbeing? It’s completely ignored. Carrying bottled water is challenging and purchasing a water-bottle on the go is an expensive bet. This adversely impacts the health of the workers, who end up suffering from dehydration, fainting, nausea, dizziness, heat exhaustion and fever!
Platforms like Swiggy, Zomato, Zepto, Blinkit, Uber, Ola and many others, continue to profit while gig workers endure harsh climatic and working conditions. For them, the roads are their workplace – they are not protected by workplace safety laws, lack any benefits, and are mostly not a part of unions!
India comprises over 7.7 million gig workers, many of whom are gig workers, earning per task, a NITI Aayog report states. This number is expected to grow to 23.5 million by 2029-30.
Their jobs come with enough precarity and climate change is only exacerbating those woes. We, as consumers, have an equal responsibility to ensure we do our bit to enable ‘just’ working conditions for platform workers. Whether it’s offering a glass of water, providing a few mins of rest or even expressing gratitude for their seamless service! Our job must go beyond tipping.
We are calling on the gig economy platforms as well as the government to take urgent action. Gig workers deserve heat protection. Exposure to extreme heat, when it touches the likes of 45 degree celsius, could become fatal.
Sources:
Campaign partners:
Amazon India Workers Union (AIWU) and the Gig Workers Association (GigWA)
Addressed to:
CEOs of app-based aggregators including Zomato, Swiggy, Blinkit, Zepto, Ola, Uber, Amazon and others
Ministry of Labour and Employment
Demands:
Recognize extreme heat as an occupational hazard and make worker safety non-negotiable.
Provide climate hazard pay during red-alert heatwave days.
Equip all delivery workers with protective gear such as UV-resistant clothing, caps, hydration kits (ORS), and access to clean water.
Build or designate cooling/rest stations in high-traffic areas where workers can take shade during peak heat.
Implement “no-penalty hours” during high-heat alerts. This will allow workers to slow down or pause without income loss or algorithmic punishment.
Ensure all gig workers are covered by emergency medical insurance for climate-related health impacts.
Revise delivery window to more realistic time targets, i.e. from 8 minutes to at least 30 minutes
Legally recognize gig workers as formal workers to ensure they are entitled to labor rights and protections under existing laws.
Integrate gig workers into national social security schemes, providing them with health insurance, retirement benefits, and paid leave.
As Indian cities face one of the worst heat waves in recorded history, gig workers, who are the backbone of the platform economy, are being exposed to dangerous, often life-threatening temperatures, just to meet a delivery deadline.
Most of them have no access to water, shade, fair wages, functional public toilets or basic rest infrastructure. Their apps keep pinging, relentlessly, in the course of their 10+ hour work days!
Their earnings depend on how fast they deliver – and to meet those expectations, you will find them zooming through traffic, often risking their lives so you get your order within the stipulated, ambitious 8-minute deadline. Taking a small break is often far-fetched as that could impact incentives. A delay or cancellation could mean the worker faces a hefty penalty. And for most of these platform workers, this is their primary source of income, with no fall-back options.
And their wellbeing? It’s completely ignored. Carrying bottled water is challenging and purchasing a water-bottle on the go is an expensive bet. This adversely impacts the health of the workers, who end up suffering from dehydration, fainting, nausea, dizziness, heat exhaustion and fever!
Platforms like Swiggy, Zomato, Zepto, Blinkit, Uber, Ola and many others, continue to profit while gig workers endure harsh climatic and working conditions. For them, the roads are their workplace – they are not protected by workplace safety laws, lack any benefits, and are mostly not a part of unions!
India comprises over 7.7 million gig workers, many of whom are gig workers, earning per task, a NITI Aayog report states. This number is expected to grow to 23.5 million by 2029-30.
Their jobs come with enough precarity and climate change is only exacerbating those woes. We, as consumers, have an equal responsibility to ensure we do our bit to enable ‘just’ working conditions for platform workers. Whether it’s offering a glass of water, providing a few mins of rest or even expressing gratitude for their seamless service! Our job must go beyond tipping.
We are calling on the gig economy platforms as well as the government to take urgent action. Gig workers deserve heat protection. Exposure to extreme heat, when it touches the likes of 45 degree celsius, could become fatal.
Sources: