State Intervention and Labour Market in India: Issues and Options

Majumder, Rajarshi and Mukherjee, Dipa (2008): State Intervention and Labour Market in India: Issues and Options. Published in: K.K. Bagchi (ed) State, Labour and Development: An Indian Perspective, Abhijeet Publications (2008)

Abstract

State interventions into Labour policies in India are directed towards ensuring both job security and income security. In this paper we look at likely impact of such policies. The laws are found to serve the organised workers primarily while large masses of unorganised workers are without any security. To escape legislations, employers have substituted labour by capital, hired casual workers, and set up ancillary units. Consequently, output elasticity of employment has consistently declined and there is marked casualisation of workforce. Legislations have thus institutionalised and perpetuated labour market dualism. Reforms herein are necessary but should be implemented in a careful and phased manner to avoid deteriorating conditions in both the sectors in the name of uniformity. Linking retrenchment with Area Regeneration Programmes; upgrading employability quotient through training; allowing employers to transfer workers between units; providing easy credit and technical consultancy; and cooperative formation would help the workers.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Labour; State; Globalisation; Unorganised Sector
• Subjects: E - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics > E2 - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment > E24 - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Time Allocation, Work Behavior, and Employment Determination and Creation; Human Capital; Retirement > J21 - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J3 - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs > J38 - Public Policy; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare and Poverty > I38 - Government Policy; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs; K - Law and Economics > K3 - Other Substantive Areas of Law > K31 - Labor Law; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J3 - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs > J30 - General; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Time Allocation, Work Behavior, and Employment Determination and Creation; Human Capital; Retirement > J23 - Employment Determination; Job Creation; Demand for Labor; Self-Employment

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