Answer: 

Introduction:

The gig economy refers to the growing trend of short-term, flexible, and independent work arrangements. It has the potential to play a significant role in the empowerment of women in India.

Body:

Gig economy can help in the process of empowerment of women in India in following ways:

• Balance work and family: Gig employment allows part-time work and flexible working hours which allows women to balance their traditional family roles (homemakers and caregiver) with employment.
  • For example, the rise of online platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart has created opportunities for women in rural areas to earn money by selling their products online.
• Flexibility to enter and exit: Many women in India face barriers to employment due to cultural and societal norms. The gig economy provides women with on-demand work allowing her to join and drop-out of work force as per her own will.
• New employment opportunities: With gig employment complemented by work-from-home (WFH) and technology, new employment opportunities for women in tier 2 and 3 cities have emerged where they do not need to travel much.
  • A boost in use of digital technology and increased acceptance of virtual working for sales and distribution jobs opens up opportunities for women to enter fields where interactions are managed through apps and phone calls.
• It has addressed the issue of safety during travel and night shifts.
• Financial independence: Gig employment helps women earn extra income, boosts her confidence and gives decision making power, all of which are important components of women empowerment.
• More rewarding jobs: The gig economy has helped to provide women with access to higher paying, higher skilled work, such as consulting, design, and marketing, which can be more lucrative than traditional employment opportunities with gender wage gap.

However, gig economy comes with its own set of constraints such as:

• Lack of security: Gig economy works purely on market principle of demand and supply. There is a lack of certainty regarding availability of work and stability of career. The easily replaceable low skill gig laborers are exploited by employers and there is very little regulation.
• Lack of any benefits: Flexi-workers usually are not entitled to minimum wages, insurances, PF, retirement plans, paid leave, maternity benefits, etc.
• Lack of wage parity: Permanent employees have a grade-pay plus benefits like travel allowance, etc. Gig workers are paid strictly as per the amount of work.
• Upskilling at own cost: A worker needs to be skilled enough to be gainfully employed in the gig economy. While companies routinely invest in training employees, a gig-economy woman worker will have to upgrade her skills on her own at her own cost.
• Restricted growth: Low skill gig workers cannot move-up the organizational hierarchy and are not considered for promotions.
• Demand-Supply Mismatch: In the middle and higher end spectrum of gig jobs, there are already many more potential online independent workers than jobs, and this demand-supply mismatch will only get worse over time, depressing wages especially for women.

Conclusion:

In the short term, the gig economy can be a step towards increasing female labor force participation and women empowerment. But, in long run, predictable and formal employment with opportunities of upskilling is required. Some labor laws and regulations along with documentation of best practices across the globe on how different industries are using new technologies and at the same time creating job opportunities for women would help create supportive policies.