“While gig workers take refuge in the Social Security Code, 2020, amid a rising gig economy, Indian gig educators also require more pronounced policies and pay parity,” writes Usha Kumari.
Lucknow: India’s economy is currently defined by speed, scale, and innovation, yet its labor laws and corporate governance continue to lag behind this growth. Nowhere is that gap more visible than in edtech, one of the country’s fastest-expanding sectors, where new startups launch every day. While India champions reforms aimed at protecting and elevating educators, many edtech startups are exploiting gig educators through stringent, ungoverned policies, revealing alarming realities beneath the industry’s rapid rise.
Despite dedicating a significant number of hours and consistently performing well, there is a pay and policy disparity between contractual gig workers and permanent employees. Gig educators often face exploitation when it comes to working hours, pay, and penalties. These startups often penalise contract employees by deducting up to 75% of their pay per class for lateness, and a full day’s pay for cancellations, with penalties multiplying for repeated offences. Apart from pay, components such as loss of pay, TDS, and additional penalties further reduce net remuneration through steep deductions. If you look closely at social media, you will find many grievances alleging that these startups follow unfair policies.
According to NITI Aayog, India’s gig workforce is expected to reach 23.5 million by 2029-30, comprising 6.7% of non-agricultural workers and contributing Rs 2.36 lakh crore to GDP. Gig educators are also part of this demographic, and the edtech ecosystem’s reliance on them is only deepening. They are core pillars of these thriving startups, yet they remain without fair policies or corporate governance. Flexible working arrangements help edtech startups operate around the clock and cater to international clients, but educators are not receiving a fair share of the profits these companies generate.
Although the Code on Social Security, 2020, implemented through the Labour Codes, formally recognises gig workers and platform workers, it does not clearly demarcate whether an educator who works through an online platform, without being a full-time employee, can be included as a gig worker or platform worker. If we look closely and go by legal commentary, these definitions are broad enough to include professionals such as on-demand educators working through digital platforms or marketplaces. However, there is no definitive court ruling that establishes gig educators automatically qualify for the incentives under the Social Security Code.
Across the edtech ecosystem, social media has become an informal venue for educators to raise concerns about penalty structures, with some posts alleging deductions reaching into double-digit days’ worth of pay. Public responses to such criticism, where they occur, have often framed these policies as necessary discipline, a justification that struggles to account for penalties of this scale. Relying on PR messaging or curated employee reviews to answer concerns about pay parity, fairness, and grievance redressal is not the same as addressing them. This pattern points to a broader lack of accountability, and in some cases, a profiteering mindset, that requires correction. Edtech platforms cannot afford to overlook these concerns, particularly given rising unemployment and the steady supply of educators willing to take on gig roles.
Accountability must be borne by both employer and employee. Grievances should be addressed before they reach a social platform, rather than leaving social media to do the work regulators should. Edtech platforms must be brought within a clear policy framework that mandates transparent and fair penalty structures, capped deductions, and a solution-oriented approach, one that encourages the next-gen workforce to remain part of the ecosystem rather than being driven out of it. Regulators, in turn, must move beyond broad recognition of gig and platform workers and explicitly extend the protections of the Social Security Code to educators, closing this ambiguous gap. India cannot claim to be building a future-ready gig economy while its educators, the very workforce shaping that future, remain governed by silence. The time for policy clarity is now, not after the next viral post forces the conversation.
About the Author
Usha Kumari is a brand marketing professional and communication expert. She has worked with Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail and CaratLane, and consults brands on content and brand marketing. She serves as Visiting Faculty at the National Institute of Fashion Technology.
