While campaigning ahead of Karnataka elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday interacted with gig workers and delivery persons of various companies in Bengaluru and reiterated his party's promise to set up a Gig Workers' Welfare Board in Karnataka with a corpus fund of Rs 3,000 crore and minimum hourly wages for them.
Over a cup of coffee and masala dosa, Gandhi discussed with them to get an understanding of the lives of delivery workers, lack of stable employment and rising prices of basic commodities, Congress said in a party release.
He also keenly listened to why the youngsters had taken up gig jobs, and what were their working conditions like, the release stated. "Bengaluru alone has over two lakh people doing gig jobs. The Congress party has made specific promises for them in the manifesto, mainly to set up a Gig Workers' Welfare Board with a corpus of Rs 3,000 crore and to ensure minimum hourly wages for gig workers and other workers in the unorganised sector," the party said.
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Gandhi later hopped onto the pillion seat, and went on a ride with a delivery partner.
Several delivery partners working with Zomato-owned Blinkit protested against the change in the company’s payout structure in Delhi last month. In its manifesto, the party stated that a new transparent policy will be rolled out for out-source employment to mandate a minimum hourly wage for all gig and organised workers in domestic and personal care, logistics, food delivery, e-pharmacy, transportation and other relevant sectors.
(With inputs from PTI)
