Extending 'Employee' Status To Gig Workers – Implications Of Employee Misclassification

Contract, whose prologue screams an agreement between two principals (a cab-hailing service provider and its drivers), ends up whispering a story of master-servant relationship by its epilogue.

Like the washing-off of the proverbial paint, the true colour of this relationship is revealed with each passing clause. By the agreement's final word, it becomes clear as day that one principal has ascended to a 'master' status through thousand acquisitions (of rights), while another has descended into a 'servant' status through allowing thousand concessions (to obligations).

The existence (or lack thereof) of an employer-employee relationship between the cab-aggregator and its drivers, a question simple to ask but difficult to probe, stood as the core issue in front of the Karnataka High Court through a writ petition [MS X v. ICC ANI Technologies & Ors. — decided by the Karnataka High Court on 30 September 2024].