Celebrating Women's Day with the power of the gig economy: Have a big idea? Here's how you can convert it into a business venture!

India’s gig workforce has been witnessing a steady and significant surge. In as early as 2018, 70% of corporates have used gig workers at least once for addressing major organisational issues in India. 

More than 77 lakhs (7.7 million) workers were engaged in the gig economy in 2020-21, as per a NITI Aayog report.  In 2019, women gig workers accounted for about 68,000 jobs in India. By the second half of 2021, the participation of women in the gig economy had surged 300%. And until the end of 2022, the engagement of women in the gig economy stood at 30% leaving sufficient scope for significant growth.

A majority of the women workers hail from tier-1 cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Chennai. Of late, there has also been an uptick in women participation from tier-2 cities as well in in the gig economy.

As per a report by Assocham, the gig economy will surpass US$455 billion by 2024, in India alone.

Work Culture Redefined

Gig economy has thrown up many opportunities for solopreneurs, especially women who are open to change and innovation. 

Gig economy, in which instead of full-time employment, organisations contract with independent workers for short-term engagements, is drawing many young and talented individuals across the spectrum to give it serious thought as a means of livelihood.

With the rise of internet connectivity, smart technology and cloud storage, gig workers are able to work remotely. For women, working remotely fits the bill essentially because timings are flexible.  Also, there is not much travel involved other than perhaps for an occasional meeting with a client. 

Moreover, job security and long-term financial opportunities are no longer always guaranteed in full-time positions, so many professionals, including women use freelance work for financial gains, increased flexibility and freedom over the work they do, and to open up opportunities within their areas of expertise. 

Fuelling the Rise

The advent of start-ups has been one of the factors responsible for giving a push to the culture of gig economy in India. 

Women gig workers are providing their services to such start-ups as consultants in various departments, including finance, human resources and even specialised fields like coding and programming. 

At the other end, there are women gig workers who have reinvented themselves as solopreneurs providing food services, papad, masala and pickle-making and more, thus providing more work opportunities to others, too. 

In this age of entrepreneurs and freelancers, women are making their own mark. Individuals with an active imagination are reimagining the world. There is a huge potential as overall market research states that in recent months, the number of home-grown start-ups and entrepreneurs has exponentially increased.

The increase in crowdsourcing platforms, efficient blockchain-based payments, steady flow of work opportunities in the market are some of the driving factors contributing towards this transformation. 

In the long run, an organisation’s ability to engage with talent on an on-demand basis could truly reshape the way businesses work in the future with consultants and specialists.

Taking such growth potential of gig economy into account, even NITI Aayog had also recommended extending social security measures for such workers and their families in partnership mode as envisaged in the Code on Social Security.

The Other Side of the Coin
As per a survey, about 71% of these gig workers are the sole breadwinners of their families.

The survey further states that while their essential expenses are mostly divided between rent at 30%, household at 68%, education at 20% and medical at 24%, savings has not much scope. 

In addition, a large number of gig workers face salary shortfalls with little to no access to unsecured credit. Gig workers tend to face frequent cash shortages for various reasons. First, often there is a mismatch between cash inflows and outflow. For instance, expenses such as rent, equated monthly instalments (EMIs), or bills are required to be paid in the beginning of the month, whereas payouts are likely to be delayed, which could range from a couple of days to weeks.

Second, sudden, unplanned expenditures could arise which could disturb the budget equilibrium. For example, these could be medical expenses, home or vehicle repairs, among others.

To add to the issue, most gig economy workers who are working are not insured. Without adequate health and/or accidental benefits for themselves and their dependents directly means shelling out-of-pocket expenses on medicine and hospitalisation in an emergency.

Creating a Secure Financial Safety Net

A safety net in the form of adequate financial planning can go a long way. This would provide a back-up to survive, support your family considering women too are breadwinners and a fall-back in case things go downhill. Take, for instance, HDFC Life Sanchay Plus, which is a non-linked, non-participating, life insurance plan giving your loved ones the desired financial security. It assures a life cover to protect the family's future.

Through this life insurance plan, you tend to gain 140-460% of sum assured on maturity as guaranteed maturity benefit depending upon the policy term. You can pay premium(s) for limited period of 5, 6, 8 and 10 years or pay once under single pay. Moreover, you enjoy tax benefits as per prevailing tax laws. It is also possible to gain lumpsum payout on diagnosis of specified critical illnesses.

Without a doubt, the gig wave is democratising the workspace in India at a quite rapid pace. However, gig workers, especially women, need to adopt adequate financial planning method to ensure building a safety net to address any money related concerns in the future.