Hyderabad: A recent online survey revealed that workers in Telangana and Rajasthan who use online apps to find work often suffer loss of pay due to internet shutdowns.
As these workers depend on the internet for their livelihood, especially the ones connected with ride-hailing apps, delivery agents, and freelancers, they are subjected to face frequent challenges due to arbitrary internet halts imposed by the government or by poor internet connectivity in some areas.
Also, the uncertainty of when and where the shutdowns might occur cause stress to many workers as many of them are the sole breadwinner for their families.
To learn more about the issue, Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union, led by Shaik Salauddin, collaborated with the Bachchan Project and generated a report entitled ‘Internet Shutdowns and its Impact on Gig and Platform Workers of India’.
The case study dealt with understanding the perspectives of the gig and platform workers in Rajasthan and Telangana towards the internet shutdowns and internet dead zones.
A workshop was also held to learn the impact of internet blackouts on the personal lives of these workers.
During the workshop, the workers were made aware of their data rights and privacy, and the ways they can cope with the disruptions caused by internet halts.
As per the survey that was conducted between March and April 2023, 57.3 percent of the total 103 respondent workers, that fell in the age group of 25-34 years, work as bike taxi riders.
Most of them who are tied up with multiple ride-hailing apps in order to find work online said that they faced an internet shutdown at least nine times a year (government strategy to curb cheating in exams).
These shutdowns have led them to suffer loss in their earnings as the internet suddenly goes away in between work and they have no other access to track down the lane.
Not just shutdowns, but bad network coverage in many local spaces has affected their work over time, revealed the survey.
The workers even had to ask customers for ‘cash only’ payments due to patchy and inaccessible internet services in many areas.
In worst cases, they were even forced to search to work as daily wage earners, causing mental trauma and physical issues in their bodies.
The report suggested that government should compensate for the loss of these workers and also ensure that location-based services and payment portals should remain functional during the shutdowns.
Additionally, the workers have demanded financial support from the government and said that clear guidelines regarding the shutdowns should be provided to app-based companies.
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