Delivery Firms Step Up Hiring of Gig Workers Ahead of Crucial Festival Season

The shopping season is set to arrive next month, and online delivery firms in the country have begun to speed up hiring of workers for deliveries, according to a report. While the Reserve Bank of India is dealing with the high inflation rate, the unemployment rate in India fell below 7 percent for the first time this year. Companies who do not want to miss out on the shopping season expected in September have increased their workforce ahead of the upcoming holidays.

According to a report by Reuters, BigBasket has increased the number of its workers up to 2,200 for the June quarter. The new delivery partners were hired for the service's instant delivery arm, BB Now, which previously had only 500 workers. The firm plans to increase the number of workers by 800 before the end of the financial year, according to the report.

Festival sales are popular in India, and e-commerce firms like Amazon and Flipkart typically offer steep discounts on several products, including fashion, smartphones, computers, and consumer electronics. Meanwhile, shopping and grocery delivery services are also expected to see an increase in sales during the festival period.

However, the demand for gig workers may not be consistent with the available supply, BigBasket COO TK Balakumar told Reuters, adding that the gig workforce was not a free-flowing pool. Firms like Dunzo and BigBasket rely on their own employees for delivery.

Bangalore-based Dunzo, which delivers groceries and essentials as well as other products in major cities, also offers a separate service to pick up and drop off packages in the same city. The firm currently has 75,000 workers for its delivery services. The company's CEO Kabeer Biswas told Reuters that the constant churn and movement that has existed for around five years could cause a temporary crunch, but supply and demand would be matched.