Rajasthan Leads the way: Bill Passed to Grant Social Security to gig Workers

Rajasthan on Monday became the first Indian state to provide social security cover to platform-based gig workers, who have been subjected to widely reported exploitation by employers. The passage of the gig workers' law has been welcomed by workers and other stakeholders in the state.

The Rajasthan Assembly passed the Rajasthan Platform Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Bill, 2023, on July 24. The Bill was tabled on July 21 by the Ashok Gehlot-led government.

The Soochna Evum Rozgar Adhikar Abhiyan (SR Abhiyan), which has been pushing for this law and been involved with the advocacy and drafting of the Bill welcomed the move. In a statement, SR Abhiyan called it a "critical breakthrough that ensures the rights of a class of extremely vulnerable workers in present times". 

The organisation further said, "We recognise this as an important first step towards a long path ahead for ensuring their rights to a decent, dignified and safe livelihood for all unorganised workers in rural and urban areas. We thank the tremendously inspiring movements of workers and worker unions that led to the passage of the Maharashtra Mathadi Hamal and Other Manual Workers Act, Building and Other Construction Workers Act and others which showed us the way forward."

The new law introduces a robust mechanism by prescribing heavy monetary penalties for aggregators who fail to comply with its provisions. 

The Act also aims to provide gig workers with a unique ID that will remain consistent across all platforms, facilitating seamless registration and recognition.

The Act also mandates a welfare fee deduction mechanism that is integrated into the aggregator apps as cess fee. The funds collected from this fee will be channelled into a social security fund to finance welfare schemes for platform-based gig workers.

SR Abhiyan points out that one of the Act's crucial benefits is the automatic registration of all platform-based gig workers operating in the state as soon as they onboard aggregator platforms. This inclusive provision ensures that all eligible workers receive the support and benefits accorded by the Act, regardless of the duration of their association with the platform.

To oversee the welfare and registration of gig workers in the state, 'The Rajasthan Platform-Based Gig Workers Welfare Board' will be established as per the rules. This board is supposed to ensure that all gig workers in Rajasthan are registered with aggregators across the state. 

To enhance transparency and accountability, the Act also mandates the establishment of a centralised tracking and management system. This system will serve as a common portal, offering detailed breakdowns of individual bills, including fare charges, service costs for customers, payment to platform workers, and cess fee deductions at the transaction level.

Regarding grievance redressal, the Act designates the Department of Labour and the Tripartite Board as responsible entities. These bodies will oversee the registration, acknowledgement, and timely resolution of grievances faced by platform-based gig workers, bolstering their rights and protections.