Delivery Services Zomato, Swiggy, Zepto Halt Operations! Nationwide Strike on December 25 and 31st

Gig workers have voiced their grievances multiple times before, but little has been done, which is why the union has chosen this time for a strike. This is to put pressure on the platforms.

If you are also thinking of ordering food at home from Zepto, Zomato, or Swiggy, then pause for a moment, because delivery services of quick-commerce and food delivery platforms have slowed down across the country. The reason is not a large number of orders, but a strike by employees.

Gig Workers Go on Strike

On one hand, the country is in a festive mood for Christmas, and people are preparing to welcome the New Year. Meanwhile, gig and platform workers began a nationwide strike on December 25. As a result, customers are not receiving their food deliveries on time, and thousands of orders are also being cancelled. But the troubles do not end here; these employees have also announced another strike for December 31, i.e., New Year's Eve.

Despite the employees going on strike, these platforms did not stop taking orders. Most apps continued to accept orders, resulting in significant delays in the delivery of a large number of orders. In many cases, orders could not be fulfilled later due to the unavailability of delivery partners. This included Instamart, Zepto, and Blinkit, which failed to complete a large number of orders.

The strike had the most significant impact in Gurugram and some parts of NCR, where quick-commerce delivery came to a complete halt in many areas. Many users complained about late deliveries or cancelled orders on platforms like Swiggy Instamart, Zepto, and Blinkit.

Why Are Delivery Employees on Strike? What Are Their Demands?

This strike has been called by the Indian Federation of App-based Transport Workers (IFATW). The significant aspect is that this strike has occurred during the peak season at the end of the year, which is usually considered the busiest time for food and grocery delivery.

According to IFATW, delivery partners associated with Swiggy, Zomato, Zepto, Blinkit, Amazon, and Flipkart are participating in this protest. These employees state that it is becoming difficult to work, and their earnings are also decreasing. The employees' biggest complaint is regarding the promise of 10-minute delivery, which they want abolished. They argue that such promises put undue pressure on delivery partners, forcing them to drive dangerously on crowded roads.

The union has several other demands, such as fixing adequate rest time for employees, transparency in the incentive system, a minimum payment for every order, and social security benefits like accidental and health insurance.

IFATW states that even though the number of orders has increased, the earnings of delivery workers are continuously decreasing. This is due to cuts in incentives, penalties for delays, and the opaque process of order allocation through algorithms, which is detrimental to the workers.