India’s gig economy has expanded rapidly over the past decade and is projected to grow further. The NITI Aayog estimates that the number of gig workers will rise from approximately 7.7 million in 2021 to 23.5 million by 2030, representing more than a triple increase in non-standard employment over a short period. While this expansion has created new income-earning opportunities, there is growing concern that the benefits of this growth are being captured unevenly, particularly along gender lines.
This brief examines the structural drivers of gender exclusion in India’s gig economy and proposes a regulatory framework to enable inclusive platform-led growth.
Key Insights
- Growth with exclusion: Despite rapid expansion of India’s gig economy, women remain underrepresented – accounting for about 28% of gig workers and under 1% in mobility and delivery roles. This makes the gig economy more gender-skewed than the overall labour market.
- Structural, not supply‑driven gaps: Low female participation is driven mainly by platform design, safety risks, and regulatory blind spots rather than lack of willingness to work; existing gig structures disadvantage women in participation, hours, and earnings.
- Market incentives reinforce male dominance: Platforms have limited commercial incentives to address gender gaps, as algorithms, consumer expectations, and weak enforcement favour a predominantly male workforce and discourage investment in women’s safety and inclusion.
- Targeted regulation can unlock scale: The proposed initiative combines gender inclusion targets, extension of PoSH protections, and incentive‑linked platform certification. This can realign incentives, raise women’s participation to around 35% by 2030, and reduce gender pay and safety gaps at scale.
