A gig worker is someone who takes on short-term jobs, often for multiple service providers or aggregators. Recognising their contribution to the economy, the government has introduced measures to support them, including online registration, identity cards, and healthcare coverage under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).
The AB-PMJAY scheme offers ₹5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation at over 31,000 public and private empanelled hospitals across India.
The Ministry of Labour and Employment will soon roll out the scheme to implement these budget provisions at the earliest. As a first step, platform workers are urged to self-register on the e-Shram portal to be considered for benefits as soon as the scheme launches.
“The Platform aggregators are also to disseminate this information among the platform workers engaged with them and facilitate them to register on the e-Shram portal,” the ministry said.
Platform workers can visit e-Shram portal and complete their registration on priority.A committee comprising representatives from various stakeholders has been set up to suggest a framework for providing social security and welfare benefits to gig and platform workers.The Code on Social Security 2020, enacted by Parliament, officially defines gig and platform workers for the first time. It includes provisions for social security and welfare benefits such as life and disability cover, accident insurance, health and maternity benefits, and old age protection.
India’s gig and platform economy is growing rapidly, creating jobs in sectors such as ridesharing, delivery, logistics, and professional services. NITI Aayog has projected that over one crore workers will be employed in the gig economy in 2024-25, with the number expected to rise to 2.35 crore by 2029-30.
(With ANI inputs)