Bengaluru: Women gig workers working through online platforms in the city have expressed serious concerns about their poor working conditions. Especially the women who go to homes and provide cleaning or beautician services are extremely troubled by the lack of toilets, no place to rest and the strict rules of the company.

Toilet problem is most serious

Janani, a 35-year-old woman who works for a popular online platform, narrates her experience, saying, "Most of the time is spent in the sun while going from one booking to another. I feel thirsty, but I avoid drinking water because I am afraid of where I will go to the toilet. Many times, customers do not allow me to use their home toilet. And public toilets are also not available everywhere." He alleged that even after informing the company about this, no hearing was held.

no place to rest

According to the workers, they do not find any proper place to rest between work in different parts of the city. Because of this, many women have to rest by sitting on the footpath or at the bus stop. Lakshmi (name changed), a 39-year-old beautician, said, "Last week, my health deteriorated due to dehydration. I had to cancel the booking for that day, but the company imposed a cancellation penalty on me. I am now looking for another job because working in the sun continuously is not possible."

Earnings are decreasing due to fines and deductions

Gig workers say that fines are imposed not only for cancellation of booking but also for delay. It is common to impose a fine of Rs 10 for a delay of five minutes. Lakshmi said, "Even after earning around Rs 30,000 a month, after various deductions we end up with less than Rs 25,000. If we cancel the booking in an emergency, our rating falls, which impacts our future earnings."

No job security, punishment for raising voice?

38-year-old beautician Selvi (name changed) alleged that she was fired from her job for raising questions on basic human rights. She said, "I was working in the company for five years. In the beginning they give many types of incentives, but later gradually they remove everything. Since last year, many strict rules have been implemented on gig workers, but there is no job security. Sometimes we have to work for 13 hours continuously. There is no option to refuse or cancel the booking. When I raised my voice against this injustice and other women also got the courage to speak out. So I was fired from the job."

need to take immediate action

These experiences of women gig workers show a dark side of the city's rapidly growing gig economy. Lack of basic facilities, health risks, low income and job insecurity, all these problems are making their lives difficult. The concerned companies and the government should immediately pay attention to these problems and take steps to protect the rights of the workers.