Gig workers' union calls shutdown over fuel price hike, demands Rs. 20 per km rate

By A Representative 

The Gig & Platform Service Workers Union (GIPSWU) have called for a five-hour shutdown of app-based services on May 16, from 12 PM to 5 PM, in protest against the hike in petrol and diesel prices announced on 15 May 2026, demanding that the government and digital platforms fix a service rate of Rs. 20 per kilometre for delivery and ride-hailing workers.

Oil marketing companies raised petrol and diesel prices by approximately Rs. 3 per litre on Friday, the first major nationwide retail fuel price revision in nearly four years. Following the revision, petrol in Delhi now costs around Rs. 97.77 per litre and diesel around Rs. 90.67 per litre. The union attributed the hike to rising international crude oil prices and instability in global energy markets stemming from the ongoing conflict in West Asia, particularly tensions involving Iran and the Strait of Hormuz.

GIPSWU President Seema Singh said the hike compounds an already severe financial strain on gig workers, who had earlier been hit by an increase in LPG cylinder prices. She said delivery workers associated with Swiggy, Zomato and Blinkit cannot absorb further fuel cost burdens, especially amid ongoing heatwave conditions, and called on both the government and companies to immediately declare a rate of Rs. 20 per kilometre.

National Coordinator Nirmal Gorana said the hike directly affects approximately 1.2 crore gig and platform workers, who are among the worst-affected sections of the unorganised workforce. He noted that these workers are entirely dependent on motorcycles, scooters and other vehicles for their livelihoods, and that every fuel price increase immediately raises their operating costs while companies do not proportionately revise earnings. According to NITI Aayog estimates, India had around 7.7 million gig workers in 2020-21, a figure projected to reach 23.5 million by 2029-30.

The union stated that workers associated with platforms including Zomato, Swiggy, Blinkit, Zepto, Dunzo, Urban Company, Ola, Uber, Rapido, Porter and Amazon Flex routinely work 10 to 14 hours daily under difficult weather and traffic conditions, yet several companies have not raised delivery charges or kilometre-based compensation in step with rising operational expenses.

GIPSWU has submitted memorandums to the Government of India and to all major digital platform companies seeking immediate revision of payment structures and a direction that the burden of rising fuel costs not be passed on to workers. The union has also appealed to the public and civil society to support gig workers' concerns.