Economic Survey seeks safety net via regulations for 120 lakh gig workers

CHENNAI: E-commerce platforms employ over 37 lakh gig workers followed by the logistics sector (15 lakh) and BFSI and manufacturing sectors (10 lakh each) as the gig manpower rose to 120 lakh in FY25, showed the Economic Survey report, which was tabled by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament on Thursday.

The gig manpower rose by 55% from 77 lakh in FY21, driven by increase in smartphone penetration to over 80 crore users and 15 billion UPI transactions per month. The gig workers represent 2% of the total workforce and are likely to constitute 6.7% of the workforce by 2029-30 outpacing overall employment in India, contributing Rs 2.35 lakh crore to the GDP.