'Phones Off' This Diwali: Can a Digital Strike End Abuse of Women Gig Workers?

'The business models of platforms like Uber and Urban Company are inherently gender blind,' said a labour expert.

This Diwali, India’s first women-led gig workers’ union has called for a nationwide 'digital strike' to register their protest against harassment, exploitation, and unfair labour practices, especially affecting women, while performing their duties.

(Illustration: Kamran Akhtar/The Quint/Created Using Midjourney)

(The working conditions of gig workers is a key focus area for The Quint. Become a member to support our journalism.)

Trigger Warning: Mentions of sexual harassment.

On a September evening, 33-year-old Uber driver Sarita (name changed) was driving back to her home in South Delhi when she accepted a ride to make some 'extra cash'. Little did she know that the 20-minute ride would turn into a nightmare.

Her three customers were 'drunk', who, she alleged, kept passing sexual comments about how 'attractive' she was – and even touched her inappropriately'.

"The boy sitting next to me kept forcing me to drink. He said, 'Arrey, tu itni khoobsurat hai. Thoda beer pile aur humare saath party karne chal. Let's have fun tonight' (You're so beautiful. Have some beer and come party with us)."

Sarita to The Quint

"He then started talking about sex... and placed his hand over mine while I was trying to change the gear and ran it up to my neck," she recalled.

After somehow finishing the ride, Sarita immediately called Uber's helpline number. But all they asked her to do was to give the customer a 'bad rating' – and that they would at their end 'block him', she claimed.

"I was sexually harassed. And, god knows, what more could have happened, and yet no action was taken. They (companies) exploit us daily, and do not even care if we are not safe. We are told it's our 'personal matter' with the customer. How is that even fair to us?"

In India, at least three app-based companies – Uber, Ola, and Urban Company – have women gig workers. Yet, they are not protected under the ambit of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) or PoSH Act which was introduced 10 years ago to prevent and address sexual harassment at the workplace. In September, a Karnataka High Court judgment classified Ola drivers as 'employees' under PoSH. The order, though currently stayed, can have large implications on the gig economy.

This Diwali, Gig and Platform Service Workers Union (GIPSWU), India’s first women-led gig workers' union, has called for a nationwide 'digital strike' to register their protest against harassment, exploitation, and unfair labour practices, especially affecting women, while performing their duties.

As their phones go off for a day, they talk to The Quint about the everyday harassment they face.

'They Stare at Our Breasts, Ask Us to Sleep With Them'

According to the Economic Survey 2024, India's gig workforce is likely to grow from 77 lakh in 2020-21 to 2.35 crore by 2029-30. Although there is no gender disaggregated data, Taskmo, a task fulfilment platform that hires gig workers, reports that women’s participation in the gig economy is only about 28%.

At least five of the 10 women gig workers The Quint spoke with in India's metros admitted to being sexually harassed at least once.

Thirty-year-old Parvathy (name changed), an Uber driver in Delhi-NCR, shared how she's labelled a 'sex worker' because she drives at night.

"In March 2024, I called a customer I was supposed to pick up to let him know I was on my way. The minute he heard my voice, he said, 'Oh, you're a girl.' I said, 'Yes, sir'. He cut the line. I then texted him to cancel the ride if he had changed his mind. He called me back and said, 'I want to have sex with you. Do you charge per hour or per night?' I was shocked."

Parvathy to The Quint

"The man kept telling me that he was coming down to sleep with me and that I should be ready for it. I yelled back at him, but he cut the call and cancelled the ride. I felt so humiliated," she recounted.

Radha (name changed), another app-based driver, added that "unruly passengers are common."

"One customer was staring at my breasts throughout the trip. He called me 'hot'... and asked me if I was married and if I'd give him my mobile number. I yelled back at him and threatened to take him to the police. He then got out of the car," Radha recounted.

All three female drivers conceded that it may sound like a "one-off, bad incident" – but many of their peers had shared with them about facing some form of harassment or the other.

What's worse is that they fear challenging the customers because "it might lead to a low rating, which can impact our chances of getting work, and if they file a complaint... it can result in penalties," they explained.

While Ola declined to comment to The Quint's queries, emails to Uber and Urban Company went unanswered despite multiple attempts. However, a reason often stated is that gig workers are not employees, but 'aggregators' or 'independent contractors' with these platforms.

Chiara Furtado, a researcher on labour and digitalisation at the Centre for Internet and Society, explained to The Quint,

"Employment misclassification of gig workers and offloading of employer accountability are integral to their business models. It’s a feature, not a bug. Not only do platforms offload monetary costs to workers, but they also offload workplace risks to individual workers.... Second, their business models are inherently gender blind. We see this through the offloading of workplace risks, and the trivialisation of gender-based workplace violence."

Chiara Furtado

'Forced To Provide Services to Men Though Company Prohibits It'

Mala (name changed), a 35-year-old Bengaluru-based beautician with Urban Company, initially hesitant to speak with The Quint, recounted how she has often faced cases of men booking for services on behalf of women, as well as for men, which the platform strictly prohibits.

"I had an appointment for waxing in Indira Nagar. When I reached the client's doorstep, a man answered the door. I hesitated to go inside. His wife then stepped out – and said that the waxing was for her husband. Despite me telling her that women professionals do not provide services for male clients, the husband-wife duo forced me to."

Mala to The Quint

Though Mala wanted to cancel the booking, she feared being blocked by Urban Company.

"When I did underarm waxing for the male client, he put his hands on my shoulder, saying he needed support, and slowly brought it down to my chest. He took his hand off when his wife entered the room like nothing happened," she said.

At least seven Urban Company women workers shared similar experiences with The Quint.

Roshini (38) (name changed) from Noida and Deepti (32) (name changed) from Mumbai said they have been often asked to provide bikini waxing services to female clients in the presence of their husbands or boyfriends.

"I requested my client to ask her husband to step out of the room. I told her I was uncomfortable. She rudely asked me to proceed while he ogled at my breasts. There was a smirk on his face. I felt so disgusted."

Roshini to The Quint

Deepti, meanwhile, told her client that she would not continue until her husband left the room. "They ended up giving me a bad rating which affected my performance," she added.

All the three women admitted to The Quint that they find themselves in a dilemma on cancelling the bookings after reaching a client's house.

"If we find ourselves in an uncomfortable situation, we still find it difficult to cancel. Our clients threaten to complain, and even if the company intervenes and asks us to leave the place, they end up cutting the cancellation fee from us instead of the client," they said.

No Mentions of Sexual Harassment Policies in T&Cs of Gig Platforms

The PoSH Act legally obligates employers to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment in the workplace, requiring them to establish an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) and a redressal mechanism for individuals seeking justice. App-based companies lack the mandatory procedures required by the PoSH Act. But what about any internal guidelines to safeguard women gig workers?

"We do have any training session during the onboarding process. There hasn't even been any training on how to handle such issues," said Mala to The Quint.

A study of the terms & conditions of Ola, Uber, Urban Company found that none of them clearly mentions any internal guidelines or steps to prevent or act against sexual harassment.

In such a scenario, women workers said although they want to lodge a complaint to their respective app-based companies regarding instances of sexual harassment by customers, "there is no point of contact or representative to call apart from the helpline number".

Both Sarita and Parvathy alleged that despite reaching out to Uber's helpline number, no action was taken. The panic button installed by Uber "often does not work," they added.

"They say they will take action, but they do not. The app is biased towards customers."

Parvathy to The Quint

Although Uber acknowledges behaviour "involving violence, sexual misconduct, harassment" in its terms & conditions, the action taken by the company is "immediate loss of your account..."

"Additionally, when law enforcement is involved, we will cooperate with their investigation," the guideline states.

"How can they dare tell us that there's nothing more they can do? If we're working for them day and night, our safety needs to be protected, right?" Sarita asked.

Urban Company workers told The Quint that women aggregators are asked to "run off" from the client's place if they are being harassed.

"Every time such a situation happens, we are told to leave the place immediately. We are told to give them a bad rating. They will tell that that they'll ensure that I don't get that customer every again. But how will that help? If he (customer) can do that with me, what are the odds he won't do it with another female beautician?" asked Roshini.

Though Urban Company, in its terms & conditions, states that a 'designated grievance redressal officer' can be reached out for 'complaints and queries', this can only be done via email or post.

This – workers said – was 'insensitive' on the part of aggregators. Mala alleged,

"The app has an SOS option, but despite pressing it, we will get a call from a helpline executive hours later. He will tell us, 'Sorry, this happened to you. We will raise it as a dispute and lower the customer's rating. Please go to your next client's place.' They don't realise the extent of the harassment we face. It takes a toll on us."

Deepti added, "Urban Company is habitual of blocking IDs for no reason. Complaints against clients will only increase that. Plus, they often ask us for proof. How can we take a photo when someone is sexually harassing us?"

"Woh humari kahan sunte hai. Woh sirf customer ka side lenge. Aur humein ladne ki takat nahi hoti hai kyunki humare job ka sawal hai... (They don't listen to us; they only side with the customers. We don't have strength to fight the battle because we fear that we will lose our jobs)," they said.

Mala added that it was not "easy" for workers to go to the police and file a complaint.

"We are daily-wage workers. We can't fight against people who are way more powerful than we are. I couldn't even tell my husband, because he will force me to quit my job. We cannot afford that," she said.

All 10 workers this reporter to spoke to had one demand – implementation of a 'proper sexual harassment policy and a grievance redressal in case of any complaints'.

"We are the reason why apps like Uber and Ola do well. They need to focus on workers' satisfaction – not just customers' satisfaction," said Parvathy.

"The customer has all my information. I only have their location and what services I must provide. That should change. If we are being scrutinised and checked for the smallest of things, so should they," Roshni added.