Collaborations helping gig economy survive COVID-19

Multiple partnerships between local governments and private businesses in the gig economy space are playing an important role in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, a report by the Ola Mobility Institute (OMI), ‘Leveraging and Protecting the Gig Economy against COVID-19 has said.

The report says such collaborations between governments and businesses has resulted in the government recognising the potential of gig workers in this crisis, by two non-fiscal strategies, i.e. by actively involving the technological capability of the platforms and their logistical networks (hands-on approach), and passively facilitating their operations through legal protection (hands-off approach). The agility of businesses implies fewer challenges to staffing their gig workforce, while also providing remunerative opportunities to gig workers, it said.

In India, this collaboration has been seen as platforms such as Flipkart, Uber and Big Basket are partnering with each other in multiple cities to provide delivery of essentials.

It calls for a collective effort to strengthen social partnership with platform companies to fast-track the recovery process from the COVID-19 crisis. Gig workers and platforms must be leveraged to better manage the crisis, fast-track recovery.

It also discusses steps to protect gig workers that have been taken by the new-age platforms and the governments. New businesses are strengthening safety measures, adapting to the new work environment, providing health access to all, expanding paid leave, and taking steps to secure the livelihoods of players in the gig economy. It also says that governments across the world have also announced multiple policy measures to minimise the human and economic impact of COVID-19, and particularly protect the gig workers.

Speaking on the report, Carson Dalton, Senior Director, Ola Mobility Institute said, “COVID-19 is an unprecedented crisis of our time. Under these extraordinary circumstances, gig workers and platform companies are adapting quickly and leveraging their workforce to ensure transportation services, delivery of essential commodities and medicines are available to the most vulnerable populations.”