Karnataka Platform based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Rules, 2025.

(cid:315)(cid:175)ೇಷ (cid:170)ಾಜ(cid:205) ಪ(cid:294)(cid:206)(cid:144)ೆ ¨Ás U À – 4ಎ , 02 , 2 025( , 11 , 1947) . 382 Part – IVA BENGALURU, WEDNESDAY, 02, JULY , 2025( ASHADHA , 11, SHAKAVARSHA, 1947) No. 382 GOVERNMENT OF KARNATAKA NO: LD 413 LET 2023 Karnataka Government Secretariat, Vikasa Soudha, Bangalore, dated: 30/06/2025 NOTIFICATION The draft of the Karnataka Platform based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Rules, 2025 which the Government of Karnataka proposes to make in exercise of the powers conferred by section 28 of the Karnataka Platform Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Ordinance, 2025 (Karnataka Ordinance no 04 of 2025) is hereby published as required by sub-section (1) of section 28 of the said Act, for the information of all the persons likely to be affected thereby and notice is hereby given that the said draft will be taken into consideration after the expiry of thirty days from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette. Any objection or suggestion which may be received by the State Government from any person with respect to the said draft before the expiry of the period specified above will be considered by the State Government. Objections and suggestions may be addressed to the Secretary to Government, Labour Department, Vikasa Soudha, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Veedhi, Bengaluru. DRAFT RULES 1. Title and commencement.- (1) These rules may be called the Karnataka Platform based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Rules, 2025. (2) They shall come into force from the date of their final publication in the Official Gazette. 2. Definition.- (1) In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires (a) “Ordinance” means The Karnataka Platform based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Ordinance, 2025 (Karnataka Ordinance No. 04 of 2025); (b) “Chairperson” means the chairperson of the Board; (c) “Grievance Redressal Officer” means the authority notified by the State Government under sub-section (7) of section 22; (1)2 (d) “Member” means a member of the Board; and (e) “Section” means a section of the Ordinance. (2) All other words and expressions used but not defined in these rules shall have the same meaning as assigned to them in the Ordinance. 3. Allowances for nominated members of the Board.- (1) When a vacancy occurs or is likely to occur in the Membership of the Board, the Member-Secretary shall report to the State Government and on receipt of such report, the State Government may, by notification, nominate a person to fill the vacancy and the person so nominated shall hold office for the remainder of the term of office of the member in whose place he is nominated. (2) The travelling allowance of an official member of the Board shall be governed by the rules applicable to him for journey performed by him on official duties and shall be paid by the authority paying his salary. (3) The non-official members of the Board shall be entitled to the payment of travelling and daily allowance as per the provisions of Payment of Travelling Allowance (to Non-official Members of Committees, Commissions or other Bodies) Rules, 2001, Annexure-A of Karnataka Civil Services Rules. 4. The time, place and procedure for meetings of the Board.- (1) Every matter which the Board is required to take in to consideration shall be considered at a meeting of the Board, or if the Chairperson so directs, by circulation of resolution among the members and shall be passed by a simple majority of votes, where there is no consensus on a matter and the members of the Board are equally divided, the Chairperson shall have the deciding vote. Explanation.- The expression “Chairperson” for the purpose of the above provision shall include a member nominated or chosen under sub- rule (2) of rule 10 to preside over a meeting. (2) The Board shall meet at such places and at such times as may be decided by the Chairperson but shall meet at least once in three months. (3) The Chairperson shall preside over every meeting of the Board in which he is present and in his absence he may nominate a member of the Board to preside over such meeting in his place and in the absence of such nomination by the Chairperson, the members of the Board present in such meeting may choose one member from amongst themselves to preside over the meeting. (4) Ordinarily, two weeks’ notice shall be given to the members of the Board of a proposed meeting:3 Provided that the Chairperson, if he is satisfied that it is necessary so to do, may give notice of longer period not exceeding one month for such meeting. (5) No business except which is included in the list of business for a meeting of the Board shall be considered at the meeting without the permission of the Chairperson. (6) The Chairperson may at any time call a special meeting of the Board in case of urgency, after informing the members in advance about the subject-matter of discussion and the reason of urgency. (7) The State Government may prohibit any member, other than ex officio members, from taking part in the Meeting of the Board if,- (a) The member absents himself from three consecutive meetings of the Board without written information and consent of the Chairperson; or (b) The member in the opinion of the State Government has ceased to represent the interest which he purports to represent on the Board. 5. Maintenance of proper accounts, annual statements of accounts including balance sheet and other relevant records.- (1) The accounts of the Board shall be prepared and maintained by the Board and shall be audited by the Auditors appointed by the Board once a year. (2) The annual statement of account of the Board shall be in the approved format and in consultation with the Accountant general of the state. The format and procedures for annual statement of accounts shall be prepared in consultation with the Accountant general of the state by the Board. (3) The Board shall send a copy of the annual statement of accounts, together with the copy of the report of auditor to the State Government before the 30th of April every year.” (4) The State Government may, after perusal of the report of the auditor, give such directions, as it thinks fit, to the Board and the Board shall comply with such directions. 6. The date of submission of the audited report by the Board.- (1) The Board shall submit to the Karnataka State Legislature as soon as may be after the 1st of April every year and not later than 31st day of December an Annual Report, a soft and hard copies as may be required on the working of the Board during preceding year ending on 31st march of the year along with audited copies of Accounts together with an auditor’s report. (2) Books of accounts, register and other records.- (a) The Board shall maintain cash register, assets register and all the books of accounts. (b) The Board shall maintain required books of accounts for the purpose specified in rules 5. (c) The Board shall maintain all the database of registration of Platforms, Gig workers and claims in electronic format securely.4 (d) The Board may maintain such records and registers as it consider necessary. 7. Providing the database of Gig workers on boarded or registered.- (1) Every Aggregator or platform shall, in pursuant to sub-section (1) of section 10 of the Ordinance, electronically submit in a machine-readable format the database of all Gig workers, on a secure digital portal designated for this purpose. The aggregators or platforms shall also update the Board on any changes in the number of Gig workers on a quarterly basis, reflecting new additions and separations during the reporting period: Provided that, where an Aggregator or platform is unable to comply with the requirements set forth in sub-section(1) of section 10 of the Ordinance, such Aggregator or platform may apply in writing to the Board, explaining the challenges and requesting an extension of sixty working days or rectification of the issue whichever is later. Provided further that, compliance with the submission timeline stipulated herein be prevented solely due to a demonstrable technical failure or unavailability of the designated digital portal, the said timeline for submission shall stand extended by a period of five working days from the original due date. Provided that, information of only such Gig workers shall be provided to the Board who have been engaged as Gig workers with the Aggregator for not less than ninety days and has completed at least one Gig with the Aggregator. (2) The Board shall notify all registered Aggregators of the designated portal Uniform Resource Locator including required data schema, security protocols, and authentication mechanisms, not later than thirty days prior to the deadline stipulated in sub-section(1) of section (10) of the Ordinance. (3) All data transfers under this rule shall utilize current, secure transport layer security (TLS) encryption or such other additional encryption standards as may be specified by the Board. (4)The digital portal provided under sub-rule(1), shall contain the following data fields for each Gig worker, as available in the Aggregator's data base provided by the Gig worker during on boarding or registration.- (a) Name; (b) Registered Mobile Number; (c) Primary Operating City or District, as registered with the Aggregator; (d) UAN number as generated on the e-Shram portal. (5) The Board shall be wholly responsible for implementing and maintain appropriate technical and organizational security measures and confidentiality of the data and adhere to the applicable laws on data protection.5 8. Updating any changes in the number of Gig workers.- (1) An Aggregator shall update the Board of any increase or decrease in the number of Gig workers on-boarded or registered with the Aggregator in the following manner.- (a) Update on a quarterly basis, the change in the number of Gig workers on boarded with the Aggregator on the web portal designated by the Board. This shall include numbers that reflect the added and separated Gig workers associated with the Aggregator during the preceding quarter. (b) The Aggregator shall have seek an extension for uploading details on the portal by writing to the Board and the Board there after grant such extension as it may deem fit. 9. Registration of the aggregators or platform by the Board.- (1) Every Aggregator shall, register itself on the web portal designated by the Board uploading all the information as required on the portal which shall include registered name, authorized person, address, email address, PAN, GST and CIN number. Provided that, in case it is unable to register itself due to any technical issues contact the Board for appropriate action. (2) For the purposes of registration under sub-section (1) of section 11, where a person or body corporate or group operates multiple distinct aggregators or platforms falling within the scope of this Ordinance, a single registration shall be required for that legal entity. (3) Where a person or body corporate or group registered under this sub- rule, subsequently commences operating a new and distinct aggregator or platform within the State, or brings an existing aggregator or platform under its operation, such entity shall notify the Board of this addition within sixty working days of the date of commencing operations of such new aggregator or platform. Provided that, where an Aggregator or platform is demonstrably prevented from completing its registration within the timeline stipulated under sub-section (1) of section 11 due solely to technical malfunctions or unavailability of the designated registration portal, the Board upon satisfying itself shall grant an extension not exceeding sixty working days. 10. Publishing the register of aggregators or platform by the Board on its web portal.- (1) The Board shall maintain a register of Aggregators or platform containing the particulars of all Aggregators or platform registered under the Ordinance, and shall publish such register on its official website quarterly. (2) The register of aggregators shall contain the following namely:- (a) The registered legal name of the Aggregator entity. (b) The registration number assigned by the Board pursuant to the Ordinance. (c) Number of registered Gig workers. (d) Corporate Identification Number (CIN), Goods and Services Tax (GST) registration number, and Permanent Account Number (PAN). (e) The email and mobile number of the authorized person so designated at point of contact nominated by the aggregator.6 (f) The address of the Aggregator's registered office or principal place of business within the State, as provided during registration: Provided that, the register of aggregators or platform shall not contain any commercial, operational or financial data or other financial metrics. 11. To seek information regarding automated monitoring and decision- making systems.- (1) Every Aggregator or platform shall publish a designated mechanism on its platform to enable platform based Gig workers to reach out to the Aggregator or platform for seeking information regarding fares, earnings and customer feedback which may have an impact on the Gig workers. (2) The Aggregators or platform shall respond to the queries of the Gig worker within thirty working days of receipt of the same: Provided that, disclosure of algorithms, source code, detailed operational logic, system architecture or technical designs are not part of the information that can be sought by the Gig workers. (3) The Aggregator or platform shall only be required to provide the aforementioned information required herein above to such Gig worker(s) who have completed at least one Gig in the preceding ninety days for the Aggregator. 12. Right to appeal by the Gig worker.- (1) Any Gig worker who is aggrieved by a decision of the Aggregator or platform for termination may appeal to the Internal Dispute Resolution Committee of the Aggregator or platform with supporting documents and information, within a period of seven working days from the receipt of intimation about termination from the Aggregator’s platform. (2) The Aggregator or platform shall, through the Internal Dispute Resolution Committee constituted under section 22 of the Ordinance, deal with such appeal and shall make an endeavor to resolve the appeal within fifteen working days from the receipt of appeal. (3) The Aggregator or platform shall have the right to dismiss any appeals that are frivolous, vexatious, and repetitive by providing the reason(s) for such dismissal of the Gig worker. (4) Any party aggrieved by the final decision may with all supporting documents prefer an appeal within thirty days to the authorized person of the Board. (5) The Board shall conduct the appeal procedures as per the By-law approved by the Government. 13. Sector specific occupational safety and health standards.- (1) The Board through its approved By-Law specify sector specific occupational safety and health standards and SOPs in consultation with members of the Board and other invited specialists on occupational safety and health standards. (2) Compliances by the aggregators under sub rule (1) shall be within a maximum period of six months from the date of communicating sector specific occupational safety and health standards or after been published in the official portal of the Board.7 14. Publishing of disclosure obligations.- (1) Every Aggregator shall make the information on the grievance redressal mechanism and dispute resolution mechanism accessible to platform based Gig workers on its digital platform. (2) Disclosure obligations under sub rule (1) shall comprise of handling instant grievances, insurance and welfare schemes if any, termination and deactivation procedures, accident relief and reaching out to legal heirs, handling sexual harassment and physical harassment complaints, social security claims. 15. Sums received from any other sources.- The following shall also be considered as funds receivable by the Board under clause (v) of sub section (1) of section 19 of the Act.- (1) Any voluntary contributions made by Aggregators over and above the mandatory Welfare Fee towards Karnataka Gig Worker’s Social Security and Welfare Fund will be considered as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative under the Companies Act, 2013. (2) Any voluntary contributions made by Aggregators over and above the mandatory Welfare Fee will qualify for income tax deductions under the provisions of Income Tax Act, 1961. 16. Utilization and management of fund.- (1) The Board shall have exclusive powers to determine the specific manner, priorities, and allocations for the utilization of the Fund towards schemes, welfare measures and its administrative expenses. (2) The Board shall through its resolution and an annual budget, after approval from the Government in each financial year, shall serve as the binding directive for all expenditure incurred from the Fund. (3) The Board shall ensure proper maintenance of accounts and records for the Fund, managed with due financial prudence. (4) The Board shall, for every financial year, submit a report along with audited financial statements to the State Government which shall be laid along with the annual report in the State Legislature. 17. Collection of welfare fee.- (1) The State Government shall collect the Welfare Fee as prescribed under sub-section (3) of section 20 of the Ordinance in the following manner: (2) The Aggregator shall within thirty working days from the end of each quarter, automatically calculate the Welfare Fee and self declare such welfare fee on a quarterly basis in a simple standardized format pay the welfare fee equivalent to1-5% of each Payout made to the gig worker to be notified by the Government from time to time. 18. Deposit of the welfare fee by the aggregator or platform.- (1) The Aggregator shall through any RBI permitted banking modes and on a quarterly basis, remit the Welfare Fee electronically in the Board bank account/Treasury details of which shall be available on the Portal.8 (2) In case of any excess or incorrect contribution of Welfare Fee, paid by any aggregator, such aggregator shall claim the refund of such excess amount within ninety days from the Board. (3) The designated authority of the Board shall hear such claims as appropriate it deems fit and pass an appropriate order either to refund or not to refund such excess amount within a period not exceeding thirty days from the date of receipt of such claim. 19. Reconciliation of welfare fee.- The Board shall have powers to consider any reconciliation of welfare fee if the aggregators are liable to pay the contribution under any other law that may be applicable with specific reference to welfare fee that are payable within the State of Karnataka. 20. Payment made to platform based Gig workers and the welfare fee deducted shall be recorded on the Payment and Welfare Fee Verification System (PWFVS) for each transaction.- (1) Every Aggregator shall record specified details of payouts made to Gig workers and associated Welfare Fee deductions on the system designated by the Board by electronically uploading the required data to the Verification System in a machine-readable format every quarter. (2) Transactions data of a particular quarter shall be uploaded as a batch file by the Aggregator on a quarterly basis and within a period of thirty working days from the end of each quarter and shall include the following fields.- (a) Unique ID generated by the Board to the gig worker; (b) e-Shram Universal Account Number (UAN); (c) Pay out amount; (d) Welfare Fee remitted; (e) Date of transaction; and (f) Platform identifier 21. The composition and procedure of the Internal Dispute Resolution Committee.- Every Aggregator for the purposes of grievance redressal through Internal Dispute Resolution Committee (IDRC) required pursuant to sub-section (2) of section 22 of the Ordinance, ensure that.- (i) Every registered aggregator shall constitute an Internal Dispute Resolution Committee (IDRC) to receive all grievances raised by the gig workers through their official portal and in certain circumstances through human point of contact. (ii) The Internal Dispute Resolution Committee (IDRC) shall provide details of the procedures of grievance redressal mechanism in their portal and shall regularly hold meetings to resolve grievances of the gig workers. (iii) All decisions of the Internal Dispute Resolution Committee (IDRC) shall be in writing and by following due process of law shall resolve amicably the grievances within the timeline as prescribed under the Ordinance.9 (iv) Parties aggrieved by the decisions of Internal Dispute Resolution Committee (IDRC) shall prefer reconsideration with the Board whose decision shall be final. 22. Disposal of the petition.- (1) The Internal Dispute Resolution Committee shall upon receipt of the grievance petition review the grievance and may call upon the Gig worker for any additional clarification or necessary documents to analyse and conclude the grievance. (2) Internal Dispute Resolution Committee shall within a fourteen working days provide an action taken report to the Gig worker after following due process of law. Delay in providing any clarification by the Gig worker, the time line of fourteen working days shall be extended and initiated from the day the clarification is provided to the Internal Dispute Resolution Committee. (3) Failure either on the part of Internal Dispute Resolution Committee or Gig worker to reach out each other for any clarification, the Internal Dispute Resolution Committee shall reserve its rights to dismiss such grievance petition. (4) The Internal Dispute Resolution Committee shall have the right to dismiss any grievance petitions that are frivolous, vexatious, fraudulent, repetitive, non-maintainable by intimating the Gig worker of the reason for such dismissal. (5) Gig worker aggrieved by the decision of the Internal Dispute Resolution Committee as under sub-rule (4) shall have the right to prefer reconsideration with the Board. 23. Disposal of petition by the Grievance Redressal Officer.- (1) A Gig worker registered under the Ordinance may file an application in the specified format either in person or through web portal or any other mode before the Grievance Redressal officer in relation to any grievance arising out of entitlements, social security payments and other benefits provided by the Board under the Ordinance. (2) The grievance redressal officer shall review and grant relief of all grievances arising out of entitlements, social security payments and other benefits that the Gig worker is entitled under the Ordinance and Rules made thereunder which has been referred to him either by the Gig worker himself under sub rule (1) or platforms within the time frame fixed under the Karnataka Sakala Services Act, 2011 (Karnataka Act No. 01 of 2012). 24. The manner of disposal of appeal.- (1) The Appellate Authority shall on receiving an appeal under sub section (10) of section 22 of the ordinance shall within ninety days dispose of the appeal petition by following due process of law and observing principles of natural justice and pass appropriate orders.10 (2) The orders passed by the appellate authority under sub-rule (1), shall be communicated to the Board within seven days and the Board shall implement such orders within sixty days. 25. Time frame for the Aggregator or Platform to pay Interest for delayed payment of the welfare fee.- The Aggregator shall be liable to pay an interest for delayed payment of the Welfare Fee if the Aggregator fails to pay the said welfare fee within thirty working days from the end of each quarter: Provided that, the Aggregator shall not be liable for payment of any interest if the Aggregator was unable to pay the welfare fee due to any technical failure of the Payment and Welfare Fee Verification System (PWFVS) portal within the extended period of another thirty days. 26. Manner of dealing with non-compliance.- The Board shall be the competent authority to deal with any non compliance under sub-section (3) of section 23 of the Ordinance. 27. The manner of recovery of fine in case of non-payment.- (1) In case of any outstanding or non-payment of welfare fee payable by the Aggregator or Platform, a notice to that effect shall be issued to the Aggregator by the Board. (2) The Board shall pass an order imposing a fine as stipulated under sub section (2) of section 23 after extending an opportunity to be heard of the opposite party. (3) The fines so levied under sub-section (2) of section 23 shall be deposited in the account of the Board within thirty days of the passing of the order by the Board. 28. The manner for imposition of fines.- (1) In case of any contravention of the provisions of the Ordinance or Rules made thereunder the Aggregator or platform, a notice to that effect shall be issued to the Aggregator or platform by the Board. (2) The Board shall pass an order imposing a fine as stipulated under sub section (2) of section 23 of the ordinance after extending an opportunity to being heard by the opposite party. (3) The fines so levied under sub-section (2) shall be deposited in the account of the Board within thirty days of the passing of the order by the Board. (4) Any aggregator or platform aggrieved by the order passed under rule 280 may prefer reconsideration with the State Government within thirty days of receiving of the order under sub-rule (2). 29. The manner of submission of quarterly return by aggregator or platform.- The Aggregator or platform shall submit to the Board quarterly return as required under section 24 of the Ordinance in the following manner,-R.N.I. No. KARBIL/2001/47147 POSTAL REGN. No. RNP/KA/BGS/2202/2017-19 Licensed to post without prepayment WPP No. 297 11 (i) Upload within a maximum of thirty working days from the end of each quarter, quarterly returns electronically in machine-readable format on the portal as developed and designated by the State Government for implementation of this Ordinance; and (ii) The quarterly returns shall include information such as city, UAN number and others as notified by the State Government. By order and in the name of Governor of Karnataka, H.R. 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