Labour Ministry Notifies National Social Security Board For Gig, Platform Workers

The National Social Security Board for Unorganised Workers and Gig and Platform Workers is a government-appointed body under the Code on Social Security, 2020. It brings workers from less traditional employment arrangements into the national social security discussion. Its purpose is to help design suitable welfare schemes and oversee how those schemes work.

The board will recommend schemes for different worker groups. It will also advise the government on administering the Code, monitor government-run welfare schemes, and review state-level record keeping and fund expenditure. These duties connect policy design with implementation.

Its creation marks another step in operationalising protections for gig and platform workers. The Code came into force on November 21, 2025. The board must meet at least three times a year, giving the framework a regular forum for decisions and oversight.

The board will be chaired by the Union Minister for Labour and Employment. Its membership brings together the main groups connected to the platform economy and unorganised work. This includes representatives of the Central and state governments, aggregator companies, employers, civil society organisations, workers’ unions, and gig and platform worker associations.

This structure gives gig workers and their associations a place in discussions about welfare schemes. Aggregator companies and employers are also represented because they may have financial and administrative responsibilities under the Code. Government representatives can connect the board’s recommendations with national and state implementation.

The arrangement is designed to include different interests in one forum. Civil society organisations add another representative voice, while unions and worker associations can raise concerns from workers’ perspectives. The Union Labour Minister’s chairing role places the board within the central government’s labour policy system.

The Code on Social Security provides a broad package of potential protections for gig and platform workers. It covers life and disability insurance, accident insurance, health benefits, maternity benefits and old-age protection. The wider framework also includes provident fund, pension and gratuity benefits for workers across organised and unorganised sectors.

These benefits address different risks over a worker’s lifetime. Accident and disability cover can respond to work-related harm. Health and maternity benefits support major personal needs, while pension and old-age protection provide support later in life. Life insurance adds protection for families after a worker’s death.

The Code formally recognises gig and platform workers as employees, making them eligible for government-notified welfare schemes. The exact schemes are to be framed and recommended for different worker groups. The new board will help advise on those schemes and monitor their administration.

Eligible aggregators must contribute between 1% and 2% of their annual turnover under the Code on Social Security. The contribution is subject to a cap, so the obligation is not unlimited. This money is intended to support social security arrangements for covered gig and platform workers.

The possible impact reaches across India’s platform economy. The article identifies food delivery and quick commerce companies, along with ride-hailing and ecommerce players, as potentially affected. Examples include Swiggy, Zomato, Blinkit, Zepto, Ola, Uber, Amazon and Flipkart.

For these businesses, the change may mean more than a payment. The article also points to additional administrative obligations, such as responsibilities connected with implementing the welfare framework. The exact burden will depend on eligibility, the notified schemes and the contribution cap. The board will help operationalise the system.

The board has four main responsibilities. It will recommend suitable schemes to the Central Government for different sections of unorganised workers, gig workers and platform workers. This gives it a role in designing welfare responses for varied groups.

It will also advise the government on issues arising from administering the Code. In addition, it will monitor social welfare schemes for these workers when those schemes are administered by the government. Monitoring can connect policy decisions with how schemes operate in practice.

Finally, the board will review record-keeping functions performed at the state level. It will also review expenditure from the relevant fund and account. The board must meet at least three times each year and follow procedures prescribed by the Central Government. Together, these duties create a cycle of recommendation, advice, monitoring and financial review.

The Code’s coming into force changes the formal position of gig and platform workers. It recognises them as employees and makes them eligible for government-notified welfare schemes. Those schemes can cover insurance, health, maternity benefits and old-age protection, among other forms of social security.

For platform companies, the framework can create direct obligations. Eligible aggregators must contribute 1% to 2% of annual turnover, subject to a cap. Companies may also face additional financial and administrative responsibilities as the welfare system is implemented across the platform economy.

The Code came into force on November 21, 2025, but operationalising its protections requires institutions and schemes. The new board is intended to help with that work by recommending schemes, advising the government, monitoring welfare programmes and reviewing state records and spending. State-level efforts are also continuing, including Karnataka’s separate welfare board.

Social security is a set of protections that helps workers manage serious risks and changing needs. In this framework, it includes insurance, health and maternity benefits, provident fund, pension, gratuity and old-age protection. It can support workers during accidents, disability, illness, family-related needs and retirement.

Gig and platform workers may not work in a conventional workplace or have one traditional employer arranging benefits. Their work can be connected to aggregators and platforms instead. The Code responds by formally recognising these workers as employees and making them eligible for government-notified welfare schemes.

The new system also assigns responsibilities to aggregators. Eligible companies must contribute 1% to 2% of annual turnover, subject to a cap. A national board will recommend schemes, monitor them and review records and spending. This matters because protection depends not only on eligibility, but also on workable schemes and oversight.