Zomato’s Deepinder Goyal makes fresh comments defending gig economy: ‘Suddenly, the poor aren’t hidden away’
As the explosive rise of gig trading in India continues to trigger debates, the industry has found itself at the center of conversations ranging from political commentary to widespread criticism on social media.
While political leaders like Raghav Chadha expressed their concerns, netizens also targeted distribution platforms like Blinkit, Zepto and Instamart. Amidst this growing scrutiny, Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal has emerged as a key public voice coming forward to defend the swing commerce model.
In a detailed post on
Elaborating on this claim, he wrote: “This is the first time in history that the working class and the consumer class have interacted face to face, transaction after transaction, on this scale. And it’s this discomfort with our own selves that makes us uncomfortable with the gig economy. We want these people to look our way, so there’s less of the guilt we feel when taking orders from them.”
Zomato’s top executive attributes these controversies to guilt
Moving beyond logistics and profit, he framed the gig economy as a social mirror, arguing that class divisions have made the labor of the poor invisible to the rich for centuries. Meanwhile, the rich were consuming the results of this labor without facing the faces or fatigue behind it.
He said there was no direct encounter and therefore no personal guilt, adding that people are now forced to confront this ‘guilt’ as the poor no longer hide and come to our doorsteps. “HE ₹An order of 800 could equal their entire day’s earnings after deductions for fuel, bike rental and practice. Because inequality is no longer abstract, we tip awkwardly or avoid eye contact. “This is a personal thing.”
Deepinder Goyal also stated that before the concert era, the rich enjoyed luxury without ‘moral distress’ as labor was out of sight. But with the gig economy coming into play, now “every doorbell is a reminder of systemic inequality. That’s why arguments are exploding.”
‘Ban tenure, you won’t solve inequality… but’
The gist of his argument is that banning casual work does not solve inequality but instead eliminates livelihoods.
According to Goyal, such jobs do not automatically become registered, protected employment; rather, they disappear or are pushed back into the underground economy, where protections are weaker and accountability even lower.
“If you overregulate until the model breaks, you get the same result as paperwork instead of slogans: jobs evaporate, prices rise, demand collapses, and the people we claim to protect are the first to lose their income,” he said.
His comments come just 2 days after delivery workers affiliated with platforms such as e-commerce platforms staged protests in several cities, demanding better wages, safer working conditions and social security benefits.
Centre’s new draft rules boost social security for gig workers
As discussions on flexible working intensify, the government on Thursday pre-released draft rules on four labor laws, outlining the eligibility of flexible working and benefits for platform workers.
According to the draft rules, to benefit from the benefits of labor laws, gig or platform workers must work as a single person “for at least 90 days with an aggregator, or in the case of more than one aggregator, for not less than one hundred and twenty days in the last fiscal year.” Mint It was previously reported.
Four labor laws were notified on Thursday, including the 2019 Wage Law, the 2020 Industrial Relations Law, the 2020 Social Security Law and the 2020 Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Law.
For the first time in India, the new Labor Code officially recognizes temporary workers and brings them under the ambit of a national social safety net.
