NEW DELHI: A modest 22% of gig workers in India are the primary earners who support their families and view their jobs as their main livelihood, while 39% co-earn with other family members and do their gig. as a temporary transition to a “better opportunity”. , According to one report, the rest are dependents with little to no compulsion, who see gig work as a means to earn extra cash.
Lead at KarmaLife, a financial solutions provider for gig and blue-collar workers, and Crea University has released the report, titled. Gig Pulse. The report is based on a detailed survey of 503 active gig workers across industries including hyperlocal and city logistics, e-commerce logistics, flexi-staffing, food services and FOS sales, who use KarmaLife’s platform.
According to the report, the majority of gig workers in India are youth, with an average age of 27 years, of whom 37% are married, 29% with children and 28% are migrants. About 60% are motivated to work to support their families. In contrast, 18% claim that gig work helps them earn extra pocket money.
Pay level, job security and flexible hours are the top three things gig workers want from their work environment. In terms of primary life goals, 29% wish to be self-sufficient, 27% wish to achieve career success and 25% wish to pursue their family’s future. The report noted that around 80% of gig workers report learning ‘valuable skills’ on-the-job, although it was unclear to what extent these skills would help them progress in their careers.
Average Gig Worker Earnings Total Approx 18,000 per month, reimbursement on average more with the “Assured Pay” model than with the more flexible ‘pay-per-task’ model. On the expense side, most workers report hand-to-mouth finance, with a significant portion of income focused on essentials. (rent, groceries) and working property (mobiles, vehicle maintenance).
Gig workers across segments reported a mix of deficit and surplus in any given month, indicating they could benefit from flexible liquidity as well as access to liquid savings solutions. In a given month, more than 15% of workers faced financial losses 5,000 on average. Based on the survey, more than 80% of gig workers do not have a credit card, with two-thirds feeling the need.
About 6.6% have current or outstanding loans, 11.5% have active EMIs, and 26.3% have borroweds from peers. The report noted that only 25% were able to save regularly – citing children’s education and medical emergencies.
“This is a time-critical initiative to capture nuanced insights on the lives of a critical workforce segment in our country and build a data-driven narrative. There is little data on worker identity, household context, needs and aspirations, work patterns, financial behavior and resilience mechanisms. Through this partnership with LEAD at KREA University, we look forward to creating a rich longitudinal data asset that can help the ecosystem at large” said Rohit Rathi, Co-Founder and CEO, Karmalife.
Sharon Buteau, LEED Executive Director at Creia University, said, “We find this particularly relevant as India is on the verge of implementing a new social security code that recognizes gig workers for the first time and gives them access to deeper social protections. We plan to leverage this database for further studies relevant to policy actors.”
Despite the perceived financial vulnerability to contingencies that could impede their earnings continuity, only 20% of gig workers see insurance as a viable strategy, while 27% self-purchase insurance, while 43% have no insurance. Not there. However, 49% claim that COVID has forced them to rethink their insurance decisions. While most people receive accident insurance from employers, less than 3% receive any pension benefits.
This emerging segment is the key to a prosperous labor force in India. To help them grow, there is a need for an enabling ecosystem to support them and provide solutions to help them become more financially resilient, as well as through other aspects such as upskilling and training. Strengthening your career trajectory from