SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth | SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure | SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
National Statistics Office (NSO)
The ILO Research Brief mentions that as of October 2025, there are 653 active digital labour platforms globally, a decrease from 777 in 2021 due to rapid market consolidation and mergers. Despite this consolidation, the platform economy continues to transform the global labour market, primarily through online web-based models—the largest subcategory of which is freelance platforms. However, a severe global data gap persists; only 40 out of 133 countries currently measure digital platform employment, with coverage being particularly scarce in Africa and the Arab States.
To rectify this, the ILO is leading a multi-year technical roadmap toward the 22nd International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) in 2028, where final Internationally Agreed Statistical Standards are expected to be adopted. This framework will harmonize varying definitions and reference periods used in national Labour Force Surveys (LFS) to produce truly comparable global statistics. These global standards are essential for harmonizing definitions across the online web-based and location-based models that continue to transform the global labour market.
Key Pillars of the Global Platform Measurement Framework
Market Consolidation Tracking: Monitoring the shift from 777 to 653 active platforms to understand the impact of mergers on worker bargaining power.
Sectoral Categorization: Distinguishing between location-based models (taxi, delivery, healthcare) and the prevalent online web-based freelance subcategory.
Reference Period Harmonization: Addressing the “Measurement Gap” where different countries use non-comparable timeframes to define “active” platform work.
Institutional Roadmap (ICLS 2028): Committing to a four-year technical process to establish the world’s first coherent framework for digital employment indicators.
Multi-Source Verification: Utilizing databases like Crunchbase alongside traditional surveys to bypass limited data disclosure by private platforms.
What are “Internationally Agreed Statistical Standards”? Internationally agreed statistical standards are the common set of definitions and methodologies approved by global bodies like the ICLS to ensure data consistency across borders. In the digital economy, these standards are essential because platforms often operate across multiple jurisdictions with varying legal definitions of “employment.” Without a harmonized standard—targeted for 2028—a worker performing a task on a freelance platform might be counted as “employed” in one country but “inactive” in another based on slight differences in survey scope. Establishing these standards allows national accounts to accurately reflect the prevalence and working conditions of the gig workforce.
Policy Relevance
The transition toward the 2028 ICLS standards represents a shift from “Informal Gig Estimates” to “Sovereign Labour Data,” allowing India to benchmark its digital workforce against global high-growth peers.
Strategic Impact:
Federal Statistical Alignment: The 2028 roadmap provides the National Statistics Office (NSO) with a technical template to refine the PLFS “Current Weekly Status” (CWS), ensuring that the 653 global platforms operating in India are mapped to local job creation targets.
Bypassing Data Bottlenecks: Leveraging the Crunchbase-LFS hybrid model helps India’s Labour Ministry overcome the “Implementation Friction” caused by limited data disclosure from private ride-hailing and delivery giants.
Standardizing Digital Exports: Recognizing online web-based freelance platforms as the largest subcategory validates the structural resilience of India’s $354 billion services export engine.
Operationalizing Worker Rights: Standardized definitions are the prerequisite for the e-Shram portal to move beyond registration and into the “Techno-Legal” delivery of insurance for location-based delivery partners.
Implementation Fidelity for Global Standards: By participating in the 22nd ICLS process, India acts as a “Standard Maker,” ensuring that the unique characteristics of the Global South’s informal-digital crossover are baked into the 2028 global rules.
Follow the full report here: ILO: Digital Labour Platforms - Global Measurement Brief