Gendered Labour in the Gig Economy: A Sociological Study of Women Platform Workers in Tier-2 Indian Cities

Abstract

The expansion of platform-mediated gig work in India has been widely celebrated for offering flexible income-earning opportunities, yet its gendered dimensions remain underexamined, particularly outside metropolitan centres. This study investigates the working conditions, motivations, and constraints experienced by women platform workers — including beauty-service, tutoring, delivery, and home-based freelance workers — in Tier-2 cities of Madhya Pradesh. Drawing on a survey of 300 women gig workers, the study examines income adequacy, work-family conflict, safety concerns, and perceived autonomy. Findings indicate that while platform work is valued for its schedule flexibility and low entry barriers, it is also characterised by income volatility, weak social security coverage, and persistent safety concerns, particularly among delivery and field-based workers. Regression analysis shows that platform type, marital status, and household caregiving responsibilities significantly predict both income adequacy and work-family conflict. The paper argues that platform work reproduces, rather than resolves, existing gendered divisions of labour by allowing women to combine paid work with unpaid domestic responsibilities, while simultaneously exposing them to new forms of precarity absent in traditional informal employment. Implications for labour policy and platform regulation are discussed.