Hyderabad: Gig and Platform Workers in Telangana demanded that Congress includes the ‘Social Security Bill’ for 4.2 lakh workers in their election manifesto.
These workers include drivers of Ola, Uber, Rapido, and Porter, and delivery partners of Swiggy, Zomato, Blink, Dunzo, BigBasket, Shadowfax, Amazon, and Urban Company, among others.
In a letter addressed to the chairman of the Congress Manifesto Committee, Sridhar Babu, the Telangana Gig And Platform Workers Union (TGPWU) president, Shaik Salauddin urged the leader to introduce a social security framework similar to the one launched in Rajasthan.
The government of Rajasthan recently introduced legislation to ensure social security for Gig and Platform Workers in the state.
In July, the Rajasthan Assembly passed a bill for the formation of a welfare board as well as a fund for platform-based gig workers in the state.
“We request you to develop similar legislation in Telangana keeping a few points in mind,” stated Salahuddin.
The bill defines a gig worker as a person who performs work or participates in a work arrangement and earns from such activities outside of the traditional employer-employee relationship and who works on a contract that results in a given rate of payment, based on terms and conditions laid down in such contract and includes all piece-rate work.
Benefits for gig workers in Rajasthan
- A fee on each transaction generated in the platform is deposited into a dedicated social security fund for the welfare of gig and platform workers.
- A tripartite board comprising representatives from aggregators, worker organizations, and the government is responsible for administering social security schemes for gig and platform workers.
- All gig and platform workers onboarded with the aggregator’s platforms are automatically registered with the board and eligible for the benefits.
- A centralized tracking and management system that serves as a common portal for all financial transactions on the aggregator’s platform. This system provides a detailed breakdown of individual bills, including fares, commissions, payments to workers, fees, and taxes.
- A binding law (social security bill) that ensures that the above points are followed.
Stating that the Rajasthan Platform-based Gig Workers Bill 2023 has provided a model for the development of a welfare board to provide social protection and benefits for workers in Rajasthan, Salahuddin demanded a similar development from Congress in Telangana.
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