More than half, or 52%, of gig workers or contract employees in India feel that their work environment makes it challenging for them to upskill or find new job opportunities, reports The Business Standard, citing a report by CIIE.CO, a start-up platform built at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad. The report further suggested that gigs offered by platforms initially ‘hook’ individuals with the opportunity of short-term income but keep them employed for prolonged periods of time in a career without a long-term growth trajectory.

“Only about one in three individuals we spoke to had clear plans for shifting jobs in the near future,” the report stated. “This was despite the vast majority reportedly working overtime in their current shifts and having no resources for up-skilling at the jobs they held.” This skills gap, however, has another significant impact on the long-term growth of the economy, the report said, adding the data has revealed that platforms today are increasingly becoming the source of a first job for young graduates leaving university. If they are not upskilled and placed in good organisations with better income, it leads to underutilised human capital within the country, the report added.