Gig Workers Back Centre’s Move on Delivery Timelines

Hyderabad: The Centre’s intervention, urging quick-commerce companies to drop the ‘10-minute delivery’ norm has been welcomed by many including gig workers and unions who say the move addresses a daily safety risk on city roads but leaves more problems around such workers unresolved.

Public reaction online has largely backed the workers’ position. Many users said they were willing to wait longer if it reduced road risk for riders. Others questioned whether removing the slogan would change ground realities.

“This is a much-needed step in protecting the lives and dignity of gig and platform workers,” said Shaik Salauddin, founder president of the Telangana Gig and Platform Workers’ Union and general secretary of the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers. “The 10-minute delivery model forced delivery partners into dangerous road behaviour, extreme stress, and unsafe working conditions.”

On the ground, delivery workers described the 10-minute target as detached from how cities actually move. “Ten-minute delivery is almost impossible,” said B. Venkatesham, a member of the Gig and Platform Workers and Transport Drivers Union affiliated to AITUC. “Even covering one or two kilometres takes time, especially with traffic. The pressure on workers is immense, both from the clock and from the company. This constant rush has led to several accidents.”

Workers also note that app algorithms punish even minor delays without considering traffic or diversions. “The app only sees when the item is delivered,” said Wajid Ali, a TGPWU member who works with a quick-delivery platform. “It sees the time, not what happens on the road.”

Ali recalled a colleague who met with an accident while delivering an order. “The company did not support him at all. He paid for his own treatment. There was no insurance, nothing,” he said. The rider later returned to work for the same platform. “They just say, raise a ticket on the app. If we understood how to do all of that would we still be doing this job?”

Workers say the pressure spills into everyday interactions with customers. “Customers complain about delays,” Ali said. “They think we are delaying on purpose, but delays cut our earnings. Why would we do that?” He added that platforms calculate distance while customers watch the clock. Detours caused by blocked roads go unpaid. “Sometimes a delivery pays Rs.20, but the late penalty can be Rs.100. That is why riders are forced to take traffic risks.”

Union leaders say removing the 10-minute promise addresses only one visible part of a larger problem. “We welcome this move, but it is not enough,” Salauddin said. “Algorithmic control, arbitrary ID blocking and wage issues still remain. These are problems faced by gig workers across platforms. We need concrete laws from the central government.”

During nationwide strikes on December 25 and December 31, unions demanded an end to ultra-fast delivery models, restoration of older pay structures and social security coverage. In Hyderabad alone, unions estimate tens of thousands of delivery workers logged off apps on New Year’s Eve.