Gig Workers’ Strike Impacts New Year’s Celebrations
Food establishments hasten to clear stocks to avert last-minute hustle
By : Md Nizamuddin
Update: 2025-12-31 18:44 GMT
Hyderabad: With the call for a gig workers’ strike getting a moderate response, people heaved a sigh of relief, and their day went by normally. Though some areas reported delayed deliveries, the strike failed to have the desired impact. Gig worker union leaders, however, claimed that the strike was successful.
“There were instances, but we are much focused on conducting business, as this is a do-or-die situation. There is no guarantee of this online activity, as it is entirely dependent on the algorithm. The algorithm may change at any given time, impacting business,” says C Ravikanth Reddy, City Head of Ohri’s Cake Nation.
There were some disruptions during the early hours of the day. However, as the day progressed, the situation returned to normal.
Some customers ordering food items experienced delays, resulting in cancellations. Some of them received items which they had not ordered.
Sumit Tulsyan, a Hyderabad resident who placed orders during the morning hours, failed to receive them even till the evening. “I placed an order at 9.36 am today, and till now the order has not been delivered. Stop using….App…they are most unprofessional,” he posted on X in his complaint to an aggregator.
In the wake of attractive schemes announced by the aggregators for New Year’s Eve, most food delivery boys started working in the morning hours. However, they remained frustrated after working for hours at a stretch, as they failed to generate the targeted income.
“I have been working since morning hours, but could only make `400. This is exploitation, and none can challenge this. Special incentives are announced. However, before the target is reached to claim this, the app ensures we fail to achieve it. There is no unity whatsoever among the gig workers to question this exploitation,” rues an aged food delivery boy in Secunderabad.
Following the pan-India strike calls, Hyderabad’s gig workers began targeting areas with high demand for food delivery. Pressure was built throughout the day, as the ‘flash strike’ was aimed at the night hours (just before New Year festivities) to highlight their demands.
“Throughout the day, we ensured pressure remained, and there was a 60 per cent to 70 per cent impact. As part of the flash strike, whenever demand grew, mobile phones were switched off. This disrupted the delivery of food items, including bakery items like cakes,” said the co-founder and national general secretary of the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers (IFAT), Shaik Salauddin.
There were some disruptions during the early hours of the day. However, as the day progressed, the situation returned to normal.
Some customers ordering food items experienced delays, resulting in cancellations. Some of them received items which they had not ordered.
Sumit Tulsyan, a Hyderabad resident who placed orders during the morning hours, failed to receive them even till the evening. “I placed an order at 9.36 am today, and till now the order has not been delivered. Stop using….App…they are most unprofessional,” he posted on X in his complaint to an aggregator.
In the wake of attractive schemes announced by the aggregators for New Year’s Eve, most food delivery boys started working in the morning hours. However, they remained frustrated after working for hours at a stretch, as they failed to generate the targeted income.
“I have been working since morning hours, but could only make `400. This is exploitation, and none can challenge this. Special incentives are announced. However, before the target is reached to claim this, the app ensures we fail to achieve it. There is no unity whatsoever among the gig workers to question this exploitation,” rues an aged food delivery boy in Secunderabad.
Following the pan-India strike calls, Hyderabad’s gig workers began targeting areas with high demand for food delivery. Pressure was built throughout the day, as the ‘flash strike’ was aimed at the night hours (just before New Year festivities) to highlight their demands.
“Throughout the day, we ensured pressure remained, and there was a 60 per cent to 70 per cent impact. As part of the flash strike, whenever demand grew, mobile phones were switched off. This disrupted the delivery of food items, including bakery items like cakes,” said the co-founder and national general secretary of the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers (IFAT), Shaik Salauddin.