Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers (Social Security And Welfare) Ordinance, 2025

The Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Ordinance, 2025 has been approved by the Karnataka Governor.

Key Details of the Ordinance

Welfare Fee: Aggregator platforms will have to pay a welfare fee ranging from 1 to 5 percent of every transaction made with a gig worker quarterly.
Track and Verify Payments: All transactions involving gig workers will be recorded through a new Payment and Welfare Fee Verification System (PWFVS), overseen by a soon-to-be-formed Karnataka Gig Workers Welfare Board
Law: The amount will count toward contributions under the Code on Social Security, 2020, with annual reconciliation allowed for any differences.
The Welfare Fund: A welfare fund will be constituted as a social security system aimed at supporting lakhs of workers in the platform economy.
Funding Contributions: The Welfare Fund will be financed by contributions from platforms (welfare fees), workers, and government grants.
Beneficiaries: The fund will support schemes offering healthcare, income security, maternity benefits, and coverage in cases of old age or disability.
- Special provisions are included for women workers and persons with disabilities.
Registration: All aggregators operating in Karnataka will be required to register with the Karnataka Gig Workers Welfare Board and gig workers will receive a unique ID valid across platforms.
Gig Contracts: It must clearly outline payout terms, incentives, and rights, including the right to refuse tasks.
- Workers cannot be suspended or terminated without a written explanation and a 14-day notice, except in cases involving violence or bodily harm.
Timeline for Payments: Dedicated timelines for disbursing payments (daily, weekly, biweekly or monthly) without unjustified delays have been set to ensure fair compensation. Deductions must be transparently stated in invoices.
Platforms need to disclose how their automated systems make decisions affecting workers. These systems must not discriminate on the basis of gender, caste, religion or other factors.

About Gig Economy

A gig economy refers to a labor market characterized by short-term contracts or freelance work, often through online platforms, rather than traditional full-time employment
Range of Employment: The work can range from managing short-term rentals, tutoring, writing code, driving for ride-share services, delivering food, or authoring freelance articles.
Legal Status: The gig economy in India lacks specific dedicated laws, but existing labor reforms, like the Code on Social Security, 2020, and the Code on Wages, 2019, include gig workers under the framework of unorganized workers.
- E-SHRAM Portal: The e-SHRAM portal, launched in 2021, aims to facilitate the delivery of social security schemes to unorganized workers, including gig workers.
Characteristics:
- Flexibility and Autonomy: Gig workers have the freedom to choose when, where, and how much they work, allowing for greater work-life balance.
- Project-Based: Instead of long-term employment, gig workers engage in specific tasks, projects, or assignments.
- Self-Employed: Gig workers are self employed and don’t attract themselves to a particular organisation managing their own businesses and finances.
- No Job Security: Gig workers in India often lack job security, as they are typically engaged on a project or assignment basis, rather than as permanent employees.

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