Zomato to build Rest Points for gig workers to relax between deliveries

Food delivery firm Zomato on Thursday announced the launch of ‘The Shelter Project’ to support the gig economy and delivery partners of different companies.

Under the project, Zomato will build public infrastructure called Rest Points that would offer clean drinking water, phone-charging stations, washrooms, high-speed internet, a 24×7 helpdesk and first-aid support.

“We believe that by providing a space for all delivery partners to rest, recharge and take a moment for themselves, we can create a better environment that promotes their physical and mental health,” Zomato said in a blog post.


Deepinder Goyal, CEO of the Gurugram-based company, also tweeted about the initiative. "Announcing 'The Shelter Project' – we've started building public infrastructure (Rest Points) to support the well being of delivery partners of various companies", part of his tweet read.


Currently, Zomato has two Rest Points operational in Gurugram. The company has plans to create more such points in the densest clusters of the food delivery business.

New-age companies have been facing criticism for “poor” working environment of gig workers.

A report from research firm Fairwork India in December 2022 suggested that ride-hailing companies Uber and Ola, quick commerce platform Dunzo, online pharmacy PharmEasy, and delivery platform Amazon Flex provided the poorest conditions for gig workers in India.

Among the top performers were Urban Company, which snagged seven points, followed by Tata Group-owned BigBasket with six points, ecommerce marketplace Flipkart and food-delivery platform Swiggy received five points each.

Swiggy’s rival Zomato scored four points, while quick commerce platform Zepto and delivery logistics firm Porter received two and one points, respectively.

Fairwork evaluates the working conditions of gig workers and assessed digital platforms on five principles — pay, conditions, contracts, management, and representation — with a basic point and an advanced point for each principle.

“We were unable to evidence any platform to meet the threshold of the second point, which requires the platform to commit or provide sufficient evidence that workers earn at least the local living wage after work-related costs,” it had said.

Recently, the Rajasthan government said the state will launch Rs 200-crore fund to protect gig workers. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot announced the enactment of the Gig Workers Welfare Act, the establishment of a board and a welfare fund of Rs 200 crore in his government's Budget for 2023-24.

Gehlot said gig workers work with companies like Ola, Uber, Swiggy, Zomato, Amazon and others and their number is increasing. "To protect them from harassment, I propose to bring the Gig Workers Welfare Act, under which, along with the formation of the Gig Workers Welfare Board, a Gig Workers Welfare Fund will be established with Rs 200 crore," he said in his Budget speech.