Telangana gig and platform workers demand minimum wage guarantee in new welfare bill

Hyderabad: The Telangana Gig and Platform Workers’ Union (TGPWU), has raised strong concernsabout the lack of minimum wage protection in the draft Telangana Platform-Based Gig Workers (Registration, Social Security & Welfare) Bill, 2025.

The union president Shaik Salauddin reminded the government that in the 2023 Telangana Assembly elections, all political parties, including the ruling Congress party, promised gig and platform workers social protection, income security, and fairness in their work.

“The government must honour the promise made to us in 2023. A bill that fails to guarantee minimum wages is a betrayal of gig workers,” said Shaik Salauddin.

Some of the TGPWU's key demands are the inclusion of a legally enforceable minimum wage in the final Bill. They also ask for a public declaration from the Telangana Government to gig workers, based on its 2023 election assurance. Moreover, they seek clear rules for daily or hourly minimum wages for all platform-based workers. Finally, they want assurance of a minimum income that matches the cost of living standards.

“Our work powers the digital economy, yet we are paid less than daily wage workers. No welfare bill is complete without wage justice,” Shaik Salauddin added.

TGPWU urges Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and Labour Minister Vivek Venkatswamy to publicly commit to guaranteeing minimum wages for all gig and platform workers, strengthening enforcement and regulation over platform payouts, deductions, and work hours, and empowering the proposed Welfare Board to monitor and enforce income standards.