What does "Gig" mean to you?

Someone asked me what "Gig" means to me. For me, it means the freedom to choose – the freedom to choose who I work with, when I work, for how long, and for how much. I was also asked what changes I would like to make if I were to relive my career.

At first, I was tempted to talk about the types of companies I would like to work for and the types of bosses – what career trajectories I would like to have traversed. However, in thinking a little more deeply about this, I realized that the only boss I would like to have worked for is myself. But then there was family pressure – the pressure of bringing home a predictable paycheck, of getting the benefits that a full-time job offers, like insurance.

When we conceptualized GigVistas, we realized that we wanted to fundamentally empower professionals to make these choices and started looking at the different pieces required to enable such a choice. Insurance was clearly one of them. Having affordable insurance for oneself, spouse, children, and even parents is an important contributor to answering the "can I choose a Gig lifestyle" question.

COVID: Impacting lives and livelihoods like never before

The past two years have seen the entire world being torn apart by COVID-19. I read somewhere that the total weight of the gazillions of virions worldwide is around 10 kgs or so. 10 Kgs! A world comprising 7.8 billion people is being held to ransom by a mere 10 kgs! These minuscule virions have caused around 5 million deaths in the world (source: John Hopkins University). It's not just about the people who died – but about those who were left behind. How many of those that died were the primary bread-earners for their family? How many families have been devastated by the departure of this key-earning member? Can they get a job? As the world economy was spiraling downwards, people were losing their existing jobs, and finding new ones was getting increasingly tough. Could Gigs help here? They sure could, and if there was a way for this Gig workforce to get medical insurance for themselves and their families, this could be a major life-changing event for them.

GigVistas teams up with Alyve Health for affordable health insurance for Gig Professionals.

For all these reasons, we felt it was essential for us to offer affordable group insurance plans to individuals and their families, which otherwise they would normally not get access to.

To this end, GigVistas is proud to announce its partnership with Alyve Health. By signing up on our platform, Gig Professionals have an option to purchase affordable health care plans that start as low as Rs. 999 per year for their families – 40-70% cheaper than similar products available in retail. It's not just the cost but the coverage. Plans can include coverage up to Rs. 30 lakhs and include options for parents up to the age of 75. Being a part of the GigVistas family gives the Gig Professional an option to purchase an insurance product online without any pre-issuance medicals. Aside from this, members can avail of a free doctor (GP) on call for 12 months with negotiated discounts on medicines and exclusive access to health and wellness programs.

We are excited about partnering with Alyve Health to take this product to the members of the GigVistas platform. The Alyve Health and GigVistas team met at a very early stage, and we realized at once that we had a shared belief. By providing access to an affordable and comprehensive health plan, we make the Gig Professional truly INDEPENDENT - a prerequisite for our country's Gig Economy's growth. If you are a Gig Professional, go ahead and register on the GigVistas platform to access this plan.