Gig workforce expected to expand to 2.35 cr by 2029-30: NITI Aayog report

NITI Aayog, in a report released on Monday, stated that the gig workforce continues to expand and is expected to reach 2.35 crore workers by 2029-30. The report, which was released by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery, CEO Amitabh Kant and Special Secretary Dr. K Rajeswara Rao, stated that gig workers are expected to form 6.7 per cent of the non-agricultural workforce or 4.1 per cent of the total livelihood in India by 2029-30. 

The report estimated 77 lakh workers to have been engaged in the gig economy in 2020-21, constituting 2.6 per cent of the non-agricultural workforce or 1.5 per cent of the total workforce in India, while it is estimated to be 68 lakh in 2019-20, forming 2.4 per cent of the non-farm workforce or 1.3 per cent of the total workers in India. 

NITI Aayog stated that the employment elasticity to GDP growth for gig workers was above 1 throughout 20211-12 to 2019-20. It always remained above the overall employment elasticity. “The higher employment elasticity for gig workers indicates the nature of economic growth, which created greater demand for gig workers while not generating commensurate demand for non-gig workers,” it added. 

Moreover, gig work is expanding across all sectors, the report added. It said that around 26.6 lakh gig workers were involved in retail trade and sales, 13 lakh in the transportation sector, 6.2 lakh in manufacturing, and 6.3 lakh in finance and insurance activities. 

The retail sector saw an increase of 15 lakh workers in 2011-12 to 2019-20, while transport sector saw an uptick of 7.8 lakh, and manufacturing saw an increase of 3.9 lakh workers. 

Education sector saw an expansion from 66,000 to more than 1 lakh by 2019-20. 

The NITI Aayog report added that 47 per cent of the gig work is in medium skilled jobs, while 22 per cent is in high-skilled and 31 per cent in low-skilled jobs. “Trend shows the concentration of workers in medium skills is gradually declining and that of the low skilled and high skilled is increasing. It may be expected that while the domination of medium skills would continue till 2030, gig work with other skills will emerge,” it said. 

The report released by NITI Aayog presents comprehensive perspectives and recommendations on the gig-platform economy in India. It presents an estimation of the “current size and job-generation potential of the sector”, and highlights the “opportunities and challenges” of the sector.

“The recommendations in this report will serve as a crucial resource for ministries, state governments, training providers, platform companies and other stakeholders to work in collaboration for promoting growth and employment opportunities in this sector,” said Amitabh Kant.

The report recommends accelerating access to finance through products specifically designed for platform workers, linking self-employed individuals engaged in the business of selling regional and rural cuisine, street food, etc., with platforms to enable them to sell their produce to wider markets. 

Also read: Parameswaran Iyer appointed as CEO of NITI Aayog