ARE GIG WORKERS REALLY ‘FREE’? THE HIDDEN REALITY BEHIND FLEXIBLE WORK IN INDIA

AUTHOR – TEESHA, STUDENT AT SCHOOL OF EXCELLENCE IN LAW, THE TAMILNADU DR. AMBEDKAR LAW UNIVERSITY

BEST CITATION – TEESHA, ARE GIG WORKERS REALLY ‘FREE’? THE HIDDEN REALITY BEHIND FLEXIBLE WORK IN INDIA, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (5) OF 2026, PG. 285-289, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.

ABSTRACT

India’s gig economy has expanded rapidly, with the workforce growing from 2.5 million in 2011-12 to nearly 7.7 million by 2023, projected to exceed 23 million by 2030. Platform companies market gig work as flexible, autonomous, and empowering a narrative embraced by workers seeking alternatives to rigid formal employment. This paper interrogates that promise of freedom by examining the structural realities of platform-based work in India. Drawing on secondary data, government reports, labour law frameworks, and international fairwork assessments, the study finds that algorithmic management, income volatility, classification as independent contractors, and the absence of enforceable social protections systematically undermine worker autonomy. The flexibility marketed to gig workers operates largely on terms dictated by platforms, locking workers into precarious conditions while shielding companies from statutory employer obligations. The paper concludes that meaningful freedom for gig workers requires regulatory intervention including reclassification frameworks, mandated social security contributions, and collective bargaining rights to rebalance the asymmetry between platform power and worker vulnerability.

Keywords: gig economy, platform work, labour rights, algorithmic control, precarious employment, India