Swiggy: Two-day paid monthly period leave for all female delivery partners

Swiggy has introduced a two-day paid monthly period leave for its 1,000-plus regular female delivery partners.

In a statement, Swiggy’s vice president for operations, Mihir Shah, said discomfort during menstruation could be the most underreported reason why women don’t consider delivery as a viable gig. Announcing a “no-questions-asked, two-day paid monthly period time-off” policy for all regular female delivery partners, he said: “This industry-first initiative gives our female DEs the option to voluntarily take time off during their menstrual cycle and be eligible for a minimum earnings guarantee during that time.”

Last year, Zomato allowed female employees to take up to 10-day period leave in a year. It is not applicable to gig workers.

Also read: Swiggy follows Zomato, plans to lay off 1,100 employees

Swiggy has associated with various restaurants to provide easy access to clean and safe public restrooms to its employees. It has partnered with Shell to enable its delivery partners to access restrooms across all their petrol stations in the country.

The female delivery partners are also provided with vehicles. The company said, “First, assuring them that delivery by bicycle is a viable option for short-distance orders. In fact, 22 per cent of our women delivery partners deliver on bicycles. Second, we’re also working with electric mobility partners to facilitate EV cycles and bikes (sub 25kmph) on rent.”

Also read: Swiggy to downsize private brand kitchens, to impact around 900 employees

Previously, female delivery partners were on duty only till 6pm. Now Swiggy has implemented dinner slot deliveries due to increased demand. However, the delivery partners will be able to decline deliveries to areas that they deem unsafe. An SoS service in the delivery partners app would also help them connect to a Swiggy helpline, local police or an ambulance in case of medical emergency.