Uber, Eternal and Porter reportedly quit Karnataka gig workers welfare board
The platforms are reportedly challenging Karnataka’s 2025 gig-worker law as the state fills board vacancies and moves to enforce a welfare levy of 1% per transaction, subject to category-based caps.
What happened
Uber, Eternal and Porter reportedly exited Karnataka’s gig workers welfare board while challenging the state’s 2025 law. The government is filling vacancies as
Key facts
- 15 platform companies
- about 7 lakh gig workers
- 1% of each transaction
- up to 50 paise per food and grocery delivery transaction
- 50 paise for two-wheel ride-hailing transactions
- 75 paise for three-wheel ride-hailing transactions
- ₹1 for four-wheel ride-hailing transactions
Why this matters
Karnataka’s evolving gig-worker regime may reshape the attractiveness of local mobility and delivery partnerships, warranting diligence on levy exposure, workforce classification obligations and scalable compliance capabilities.
What to watch
- Karnataka government notification specifying levy collection mechanics, caps, payment frequency, and liable entity.
- High Court filings, interim-stay decisions, and platform arguments over constitutional validity or transaction-level assessment.
- Appointment of board members and issuance of worker-registration, grievance, or benefit-disbursement rules.
- Introduction of Karnataka-specific customer surcharges, merchant fee changes, or incentive cuts by Uber, Eternal/Zomato, Blinkit, Porter, Swiggy, or other platforms.
- Similar gig-worker welfare bills, levy proposals, or board formations in Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and other large platform markets.
- Add or increase platform/customer welfare fees in Karnataka, likely framed as regulatory or service charges.
- Seek judicial clarification on the levy base, category caps, worker classification, and board representation.
- Reduce promotional subsidies, tighten delivery-radius economics, and prioritize higher-order-value transactions in Karnataka.
- Rework merchant contracts and commissions to share compliance costs, especially in low-margin food delivery and hyperlocal categories.
- Strengthen worker-benefit programs voluntarily to improve negotiating leverage and reduce political pressure.