Zomato, Swiggy offer higher incentives amid nationwide gig worker strike threat

Food delivery platforms Swiggy and Zomato have announced higher peak-hour payouts for delivery partners, even as gig worker unions warn of a nationwide strike that could involve up to 1.7 lakh workers on December 31.

The proposed strike is being led by the Indian Federation of App-based Transport Workers (IFAT), which has written to Labour and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, seeking urgent government intervention.





Why are gig-workers protesting?


Unions say delivery workers are protesting against unsafe working conditions and aggressive delivery targets, declining wages, arbitrary ID or account blocking, police harassment, and the lack of dignity and social security. They argue that while platforms rely on flexible labour, workers remain outside the ambit of core labour protections.

Key demands include urgent government intervention and regulation of platform companies under labour laws, an end to arbitrary ID blocking and penalties, fair and predictable wages, protection of the right to organise and collectively bargain, mandatory rest breaks, and stricter enforcement of labour safeguards.

Platforms step up incentives

Against this backdrop, Swiggy and Zomato have announced additional incentives to ensure rider availability during peak hours on New Year’s Eve.

Swiggy is offering ₹30 per order between 4–6 pm, ₹105 per order between 6–10 pm, and ₹80 per order between 10 pm and midnight.

Zomatois offering ₹30 per order between 4–6 pm, ₹100 per order between 6–10 pm, ₹80 per order between 10 pm and midnight, and ₹80 per order between 12 am and 4 am.

Industry estimates suggest that delivery partners typically earn around ₹25 per order for food deliveries, highlighting the sharp jump in payouts during peak windows.

Quick-commerce platforms Instamart, Blinkit and Zepto have also offered higher incentives during peak hours, according to sources.

Swiggy and Zomato declined to comment on both the proposed strike and the additional payouts.

Potential impact on platforms


According to estimates cited by brokerage Elara, widespread participation in the strike could lead to a 10–20% hit to order volumes, translating into a 0.3–0.7% impact on food delivery and quick-commerce revenues for platforms such as Eternal and Swiggy.

Festive days typically see around 60% higher orders per day, with any disruption likely to be concentrated in select southern metro markets.

Mixed signals from earlier protest


Gig workers had also protested on December 25, with unions claiming participation by about 40,000 delivery workers nationwide. However, platforms and customers reported little to no disruption in services that day.

Analysts note that several factors could limit the success of a large-scale strike on December 31, including the fact that New Year’s Eve is among the highest-earning days for gig workers, the highly unorganised nature of the sector, and log-in decisions that are driven largely by individual availability and income incentives.

Even so, unions maintain that the strike threat reflects deeper structural issues in the gig economy, which they say cannot be addressed through short-term incentives alone.