Indian workers are merely slaves, not employees!

Introduction

India’s emergence as a global hub for low‐cost labor—propelled by service outsourcing, digital content moderation, and gig‐economy platforms—has created vast employment opportunities for millions of workers. However, this model often reduces human capital to mere “man‐in‐the‐loop” roles, effectively transforming employees into disposable resources rather than skilled professionals. While multinational corporations benefit from substantial cost arbitrage, India’s long‐term growth suffers from a talent drain into low‐value tasks, perpetuation of toxic workplace cultures, and negligible investment in employee welfare. Consequently, a large segment of Indian workers endures substandard conditions—long hours, minimal benefits, and precarious job security—resulting in a “race to the bottom” that undermines socioeconomic progress (Drishti IAS, East Asia Forum).

1. Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” Reliance on Indian Labor

Amazon’s much‐touted “Just Walk Out” checkout technology was marketed as an end‐to‐end computer‐vision solution enabling customers to shop without traditional billing counters. In reality, up to 70 percent of these transactions were manually reviewed by approximately 1,000 Indian workers tasked with verifying items in customers’ virtual carts—a role antithetical to the promise of fully automated AI systems (mint, Business Standard).

Despite Amazon’s public assertions that the technology functioned “entirely by computer vision,” internal reports revealed that India‐based teams had to cross‐check nearly three‐quarters of purchases in 2022 to correct AI misreads and ensure billing accuracy (mint). Such human‐in‐the‐loop arrangements reduce workers to low‐paid validators, eroding the dignity of high‐skilled talent by assigning them repetitive, error‐correction tasks. Meanwhile, local labor laws and safety standards remain loosely enforced, leaving these employees without adequate protections. Notably, international labor unions have flagged Amazon India’s warehouses for intense pressure, inadequate safety gear, and high injury rates among delivery staff—further illustrating how global giants offload both risk and drudgery onto Indian shoulders (The Economic Times, Al Jazeera).

2. The Builder.ai Debacle and Toxic Workplace Culture

Builder.ai—once heralded as a pioneering AI‐powered app‐development platform—collapsed into insolvency in early 2025, leaving hundreds of Indian employees stranded without pay and facing an opaque management structure. The UK headquarters’ insolvency filing cited $85 million in debts to Amazon and $30 million to Microsoft, but the crisis was precipitated by systematic financial mismanagement and questionable accounting practices under previous leadership (Financial Times).

Glassdoor reviews from Indian engineering teams painted a grim picture of life inside Builder.ai: performance appraisals were arbitrary, communication channels were shrouded in secrecy, and employees were subject to “crippling mental health issues due to the toxic work culture” (Glassdoor). Multiple reviews highlighted that real AI development was largely a façade—engineering staff found themselves executing mundane tasks with no clear roadmap or career progression, despite the company’s glossy rhetoric of disruptive innovation. Salaries were often delayed, promotions were stalled indefinitely, and management frequently ignored feedback, fostering an environment where employees felt disposable rather than valued.

When Builder.ai’s insolvency filing came to light, many Indian workers discovered that months of unpaid wages and equivocal severance policies left them with no viable recourse. This collapse underscores a broader trend: India’s labor market is replete with startups that leverage the country’s low‐cost talent pool without establishing robust accountability or employee welfare mechanisms. As a result, workers are “slaves” to unkept promises and precarious business models, rather than true “employees” with rights and career trajectories.

3. Widespread Poor and Toxic Work Conditions

Beyond high‐profile tech failures, countless Indian workers in logistics, retail, and manufacturing endure unsafe, exploitative environments. A 2024 UNI Global Union report revealed that one in five Amazon delivery drivers in India reported job‐related injuries, citing inadequate safety equipment and unrealistic productivity targets (The Economic Times, Al Jazeera). Similarly, investigations into Byju’s and other prominent edtech companies uncovered rampant mis‐selling pressures, arbitrary pay cuts, and high employee attrition due to mental stress—signaling that toxic work cultures are not confined to a single sector (The Financial Express).

Informal and contract laborers, who constitute over 90 percent of India’s workforce, are especially vulnerable. They often lack written employment contracts, access to social security, and mechanisms to lodge grievances. In many e‐commerce fulfillment centers, workers report 12-hour shifts with no overtime compensation, minimal breaks, and threats of summary dismissal if performance metrics—set unrealistically high—are not met. These conditions reflect a systemic disregard for worker well‐being in the pursuit of competitive advantage in global supply chains.

4. Economic and Social Consequences of Cheap Labor Exports

India’s emphasis on exporting low‐cost services (customer support, data annotation, quality validation) has come at the expense of cultivating robust domestic industries and improving workplace standards. While the service sector contributes over 50 percent of GDP, it employs only one‐third of the workforce, often relegating employees to low‐wage, skill‐underutilized roles (Drishti IAS, Drishti IAS). The country’s share of global exports in labor‐intensive manufacturing—textiles, apparel, footwear—has stagnated or declined, as Bangladesh and Vietnam capture larger market portions by offering both competitive costs and relatively better labor conditions (The Daily Brief, East Asia Forum).

This dynamic perpetuates income inequality: India’s rising GDP coexists with high youth unemployment (52 percent for ages 15–29) and significant underemployment among graduates. Restrictive labor regulations—originally intended to protect workers—have paradoxically fueled the informal economy, where regulations are nonexistent, and worker exploitation is rampant (Wikipedia, ETManufacturing.in). Meanwhile, cheap labor arbitrage discourages investment in automation, upskilling, and safer workplace practices. Consequently, India forfeits the compounding benefits of higher‐value manufacturing, robust social safety nets, and human capital development—embedding a cycle where workers remain trapped in precarious positions.

Conclusion

The paradigm of exporting cheap labor as a national growth strategy is fundamentally unsustainable. While multinational corporations and startups reap short‐term cost savings, Indian workers bear the brunt of substandard wages, hazardous conditions, and precarious careers. The Builder.ai collapse and Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” façade exemplify how both established giants and emerging disruptors exploit cheap labor without fostering true employee engagement or development.

To rectify this imbalance, India must recalibrate its approach to labor. Policy reforms should prioritize:

1. Stronger Enforcement of Labor Laws: Ensure that informal and contract workers have access to social security, written contracts, and enforceable safety standards.
2. Incentives for Skill Development: Subsidize vocational training and encourage industries to invest in employee upskilling, shifting the country up the value chain beyond basic validation tasks.
3. Promotion of Higher‐Value Manufacturing: Simplify regulations and reduce compliance burdens to attract investments in labor‐intensive manufacturing, thereby creating quality jobs that leverage India’s demographic dividend.
4. Corporate Accountability and Transparency: Mandate disclosures of workplace conditions, turnover rates, and employee grievance mechanisms for all companies operating in India, irrespective of size.

By moving beyond the “race to the bottom,” India can transform its workforce from “mere slaves” to empowered professionals, driving sustainable economic growth and social equity.

References

1. “AI-based ‘Just Walk Out’ checkout tech was powered by 1,000 Indian workers,” Livemint, April 4, 2024. (mint)
2. Rimjhim Singh, “Amazon’s ‘Just Walk Out’ checkout tech was powered by 1,000 Indian workers,” Business Standard, April 4, 2024. (Business Standard)
3. “Amazon workers in India endure intense pressure, unsafe working conditions: UNI Global Union,” The Economic Times, April 2024. (The Economic Times, Al Jazeera)
4. “Microsoft-backed UK tech unicorn Builder.ai collapses into insolvency,” Financial Times, late May 2025. (Financial Times)
5. “Builder.ai Reviews,” Glassdoor, January 2025. (Glassdoor)
6. “Byju’s staff reveal harsh work conditions at Indian tech giant,” The Financial Express, 2024. (The Financial Express)
7. “What are the Key Issues Related to the Service-Led Growth Model for India?” Drishti IAS, December 31, 2024. (Drishti IAS)
8. “Capitalising on India’s comparative advantages in labour,” East Asia Forum, May 29, 2024. (East Asia Forum)
9. “Recap: India’s economy, US rate cut, Quick commerce clash and Trade deficit,” Zerodha Daily Brief, 2024. (The Daily Brief)
10. “Labour in India,” Wikipedia, May 2025. (Wikipedia)