Gig workers battle heatwave without support from delivery platforms

Pawan Kumar, a gig worker, has been running a chock-a-block schedule since the onset of harsh summer. The 25-year-old fixes air conditioners for an online platform, from where he gets over 10 assignments a day.

Battling the heatwave, he rides his rented bike to various locations across the city, climbs stairs with his heavy equipment bag, sometimes without even being offered a glass of water by his clients.

Mr. Kumar said he has been forced to work under the severe heatwave conditions without any health-related support from the company.

“Recently, I was on my third assignment of the day, when I fainted. Minutes later, I found myself lying on the floor of the house, with my client sprinkling water on my face,” said Mr. Kumar, adding that he completed his task despite not being able to stand properly.

Later, Mr. Kumar was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

“Every day, at least one of my colleagues has been fainting. The company management did nothing when we raised the concern. Neither they ensured our medical checkup nor gave us health supplements,” said Mr. Kumar, adding that they were denied higher surge charges too despite working in such difficult conditions.

A similar scenario panned out recently when Rohit Garg, a food delivery partner, collapsed and had to be taken to the emergency ward of Safdarjang Hospital for treatment. The 24-year-old gig worker’s body temperature had risen sharply. He was shivering when he collapsed while delivering his order.

Speaking to The Hindu, a doctor said he suffered a heatstroke due to prolonged exposure to high temperature. His sugar level had dropped significantly.

Another senior doctor said their hospital has seen a surge in the number patients suffering from severe diarrhoea, sunburn, and heatstroke.

“Most of these patients have been working outdoors for long hours without any access to cooling devices or healthcare supplements to control their body temperatures,” he added.

Pankaj Bisht, another food delivery partner, told The Hindu that while his platform boasts of reducing carbon footprint with the help of delivery workers who use bicycles, most like him are not getting any assistance to battle the heat.

“We had requested the platform to give us ₹35 surge charge per order. Instead of assisting us, members of the management are requesting people on social media to not order during the afternoon hours,” he added.

Anil Kumar, who works with a grocery delivery platform, said with the onset of summer, there is a surge in small orders that yield less pay but demand the same amount of physical exertion.

“Online delivery platforms should pay us a higher amount for deliveries in the afternoon during the summer,” he added.