Govt to roll out social security schemes for gig workers; e-Shram integration deadline set for June 22

The Ministry of Labour and Employment has directed platform aggregator companies to integrate their worker databases with the e-Shram portal by June 22, 2026...

What Happened

The Ministry of Labour and Employment has directed platform aggregator companies to integrate their worker databases with the e-Shram portal by June 22, 2026, in preparation for rolling out structured social security benefits to gig and platform workers.
Benefits to be extended include accident insurance, health coverage, maternity support, and old-age protection, operationalising provisions of the Code on Social Security, 2020 that have been pending implementation.
The ministry is working to establish dedicated institutional mechanisms for the gig economy workforce and linking aggregator company databases with the e-Shram portal for real-time tracking of entitlements and portable benefit delivery.
A key eligibility condition under the proposed Central Rules is that workers must have completed at least 90 days of work to qualify for social security benefits in a given period.
The gig and platform workforce currently employs approximately one crore workers, with projections indicating expansion to nearly 2.5 crore workers by 2030.

Static Topic Bridges

The Code on Social Security, 2020 is one of four labour codes passed by Parliament as part of a comprehensive labour law consolidation exercise (alongside the Code on Wages, 2019; Industrial Relations Code, 2020; and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020). The Social Security Code consolidates nine earlier labour laws including the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, and the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961. Crucially, it is the first Indian legislation to formally define and recognise "gig workers" and "platform workers" as distinct labour categories distinct from the traditional employer-employee relationship, and to mandate social security coverage for them.

Enacted: 2020; yet to be fully notified and implemented as of 2026
Definition — Gig worker: "a person who performs work or participates in a work arrangement and earns from such activities outside of traditional employer-employee relationships"
Definition — Platform worker: one who accesses organisations through an online platform to provide specific services in exchange for payment
Aggregator contribution: 1–2% of annual turnover, capped at 5% of amounts paid to gig/platform workers
National Social Security Board: empowered to recommend and monitor welfare schemes for gig and platform workers
Each worker receives a unique Aadhaar-linked Universal Account Number (UAN) for portability of benefits across platforms

Connection to this news: The June 22 e-Shram integration deadline is the operational step that enables the Code on Social Security, 2020's gig worker provisions to become functional — without a verified worker database, benefit disbursement cannot be targeted or tracked.

e-Shram Portal — National Database of Unorganised Workers

The e-Shram portal was launched on 26 August 2021 by the Ministry of Labour and Employment as the National Database of Unorganised Workers (NDUW), seeded with Aadhaar for deduplication. It provides registered workers a Universal Account Number (UAN) on a self-declaration basis, enabling access to welfare schemes and social security entitlements. Registration is voluntary and free. As of mid-2025, over 30.98 crore unorganised workers had registered on the portal, making it the world's largest database of unorganised workers. In October 2024, the portal was upgraded into an "One-Stop-Solution" integrating multiple social security and welfare schemes.

Launch date: 26 August 2021
Ministry: Ministry of Labour and Employment
Purpose: Create a National Database of Unorganised Workers (NDUW) seeded with Aadhaar
Unique identifier issued: Universal Account Number (UAN) — 12-digit Aadhaar-linked
Registrations: over 30.98 crore workers as of mid-2025; women constitute about 53.68% of registrations
Expanded in October 2024 to integrate multiple social security schemes in a single interface
Target for gig workers: aggregator companies required to share worker data for seamless benefit linkage

Connection to this news: The June 22 deadline requires platform companies to upload their worker data to e-Shram, enabling the government to identify, verify, and enroll gig workers into the forthcoming social security framework without requiring individual self-registration.

Four Labour Codes — India's Labour Law Consolidation

India's labour law consolidation, completed in 2020, subsumed 44 central labour laws into four comprehensive codes. The rationale was to simplify compliance, extend coverage to the informal sector, and align labour law with the contemporary economy including gig work. The four codes are: (1) Code on Wages, 2019 — minimum wages, bonus, equal remuneration; (2) Industrial Relations Code, 2020 — trade unions, industrial disputes, standing orders; (3) Code on Social Security, 2020 — provident fund, ESIC, gratuity, maternity, gig workers; (4) Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 — workplace safety, contract labour, migrant workers. All four have been passed by Parliament but full implementation via state-level rules is pending.

Four Labour Codes enacted: 2019–2020
Consolidation: 44 central labour laws → 4 codes
Code on Social Security, 2020 consolidates: EPF Act 1952, ESIC Act 1948, Maternity Benefit Act 1961, Gratuity Act 1972, and five others
Implementation status: Codes passed by Parliament; implementation depends on central and state rules being notified
Gig/platform worker coverage: first time in Indian legislative history

Connection to this news: The social security rollout for gig workers is the first concrete implementation step under the Code on Social Security, 2020, marking a shift from codification to actual operationalisation of the labour law reform agenda.

Key Facts & Data

Current gig/platform workforce: approximately 1 crore workers
Projected gig workforce by 2030: approximately 2.5 crore workers
e-Shram portal launch: 26 August 2021
e-Shram registrations: over 30.98 crore unorganised workers (as of mid-2025)
Aggregator contribution rate under Code on Social Security, 2020: 1–2% of annual turnover, capped at 5% of payments to workers
Eligibility threshold under proposed rules: 90 days of work in the qualifying period
Integration deadline: June 22, 2026
Code on Social Security, 2020 consolidates: 9 earlier labour laws
Benefits to be extended: accident insurance, health coverage, maternity support, old-age protection