Comprises 14 essays which discuss, inter alia, industrial productivity, rural non-farm employment, employment security and industrial restructuring, employment creation in segmented labour markets, casualization of labour, landless women workers, the impact of new technology on labour relations, and the impact of structural adjustment on rural poverty.
This book examines the structural changes in the labour market in North-East India. Going beyond the conventional study of tea and agricultural sectors, it focuses on the nature, pattern and structure of work and employment in the region as well as documents emerging shifts in the labour force towards farm to non-farm dynamics. The chapters explore historical developments in employment patterns, labour market policies, issues of gender and social-religious dimensions, as well as point to growing forms of casual, informal and contractual labour across sectors. Through large-scale data and detailed case studies on unfree labour in plantations and those employed in crafts, handloom and the manufacturing industry, the book provides insights into labour and employment in the region. It also delves into the temporal and spatial dimensions of non-farm employment and its relationship with rural income distribution and labour mobility. By bringing interdisciplinary perspectives from scholars working on North-East India, this work fills a major gap in the political economy of the labour market in the region. The volume will be useful to scholars and researchers of development studies, North-East India studies, labour studies, economics, sociology and political science as well to those involved with governance and policymaking.
Outlining important policy requirements for Bangladesh to become an upper middle-income country, the book presents research work conducted during the project “Changing Labor Markets in Bangladesh: Understanding Dynamics in Relation to Economic Growth and Poverty,” sponsored by the International Development Research Center (IDRC), Canada. Bangladesh has experienced remarkable economic growth rates over the last decade. The country has recently been upgraded from a low-income country (LIC) to a lower-middle-income country (LMIC) as per the World Bank’s classification system. By 2024, the country also aspires to graduate from the United Nation’s list of least developed countries (LDC). The 7th five-year plan sets an ambitious target of 8 percent growth in GDP by 2020. There are also steep development targets to be achieved under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. All these will require an enormous leap forward from the current level of economic growth rate and sustaining it in the future. The situation also calls for considerable structural change in the economy, facilitating large-scale economic diversification. Rapid expansion of labor-intensive and high-productivity sectors, both in the farm and nonfarm sectors, is thus crucial for Bangladesh. Further, this should take place in conjunction with interventions to enhance productivity, jobs and incomes in traditional and informal activities where there are large pools of surplus labor. Given its relevance for Bangladesh and applicability to many other developing countries, the book offers a unique and pioneering resource for researchers, industry watchers as well as policy makers.
This book addresses women’s changing role in and contributions to the Indian labour market. It explores how feminist theories and frameworks have changed over time and gradually been supplanted by new ones. The book explores the structural shift in women’s employment from farm to non-farm jobs in services and industries, both theoretically and empirically. Further, it examines the steady rise of women in high skilled or ‘new economy’ sectors like information and communication technology, electronics and telecom; and in low skilled work such as domestic work, particularly in urban areas. It also scrutinizes how emerging sectors of the economy are experimenting with new forms of employment by changing the temporal (part-time work, flexible hours), spatial (location of work) and contractual (temporary contracts) dimensions. Beyond analysing the above-mentioned aspects, the book discusses perennial challenges such as patriarchy, socio-cultural norms and gender-based labour market inequalities across occupations as a ‘glass ceiling’ or ‘sticky floor’. One of the book’s most important contributions is inclusion of detailed labour market statistics for women, with long-term trends and patterns, as well as comparisons with other countries and regions. In closing, the book highlights women’s participation in economic and non-economic activities and related quantification issues, i.e. the invisibility of women’s work, which remains a highly contentious aspect. Given its content, the book offers a valuable asset for a broad readership including academics, NGOs, and policymakers. “The subject of low work participation rates for women has been of concern to economists, gender specialists and policy makers for decades. This book makes an important contribution in understanding the role of women in development and identifies some new policy directions that could be initiated to facilitate greater employment of women.” - Rohini Nayyar, Former Principal Adviser, Yojana Aayog, Government of India “This book is timely and extremely relevant to the academic and policy debates in India. Given the puzzle of low and declining female labour force participation, it is critical to focus on where women work, beyond a supply-side perspective. In addition, efforts are needed to better measure women’s work, which is typically underreported. In both these dimensions, this book makes an important contribution, which will be valuable for both academics and policymakers.” - Sher Verick, Employment Policy and Analysis Programme (EPAP) of the International Training Centre (ITC), International Labour Organization “This book critically examines both theoretically and empirically the dynamics of changes in women’s participation in and contribution to the fast-transforming Indian labour market. The aspects covered include the essential issue of how the new forms of employment are impacting temporal, spatial and contractual dimensions. An excellent and compulsory read for academicians and policy-makers involved in gender as well as labour economics.” - Ritu Dewan, Former President, Indian Association for Women's Studies; Former Director & Professor, Dept. of Economics, University of Mumbai “The book is a required addition to the exiting literature on women’s work and employment for its comprehensive and distinctive approach. It is a unique blend of macro and micro level perspectives and issues capturing statistics.” - Neetha N., Acting Director & Professor, Centre for Women’s Development Studies (CWDS), New Delhi
Employment is a critical part of the macro-economy and a key driver of economic development. India’s employment policy over the past three decades provides an important case study for understanding how government attitudes to the labour market contribute to an emerging economy’s growth and development. This study contains important insights on the policy challenges faced by one of the world’s most populous, labour abundant economies in securing employment in a context of structural change. The book considers India’s approach to employment policy from a national and global perspective and whether policy settings promote employment intensive growth. Chapters in the first half of the volume evaluate India’s approach to employment policy within the national and international context. This includes the ILO Decent Work program, the national agenda for inclusive growth, and national regulatory frameworks for labour and education. Chapters in the second half of the volume focus on how employment policy works in practice and its impact on manufacturing workers, the self-employed, women, and rural workers. These chapters draw attention to the contradictions within the current policy regime and the need for new approaches. Employment Policy in Emerging Economies will interest scholars, policy makers and students of the Indian economy and South Asia more generally. It will support undergraduate and postgraduate academic teaching in courses on economic development, global political economy, the Indian economy and global labour.
This book revisits some of the persisting challenges of development of India, which remain unresolved even after twenty-five years of economic reforms and almost fifteen years of high growth rate. These include defining purpose of development, inequality, labour, work, unemployment, agrarian distress and migration. The book questions the overemphasis on growth to the extent of neglecting basic issues of development. With a number of contributions re-imagining development and its political economy, the book discusses above mentioned issues in light of new data and more recent conceptions of the issues. The contributors of this volume are eminent researchers in their respective field. Presenting primary as well as secondary data, the book considers the latest advances and research and also addresses new challenges like the global reorganization of production and the consequences for labour and the world of work, along with skills question. World of work has received detailed investigation in this book. This is a timely addition in existing literature especially in context of pandemic and lockdown. Informality and un/employment question is addressed in this context. Relationship among poverty, inequality and growth is examined in light of newer understanding. Agrarian distress is looked in a broader context. A number of papers are examining migration question by expanding coverage of migration and including labour mobility as apart of migration debate. The present crisis of migrant labour and absence of social security for these workers is also discussed. This book is primarily intended for those interested in recent advances on some of the basic aspects of development, like poverty, inequality, informality, word of work, migration and labour mobility. It is also useful for researchers, policy makers, journalists and civil society organizations working on these issues.
This book explores the effects of product market and labour market reforms on firms, labour institutions and labour rights in the economic and industrial relations system in India. India has over the years liberalized its economy through a broad range of reforms concerning the product market and complementing these it has also sought to reform the labour market and the industrial relations system. The book assesses the impact of these reforms on both the formal and informal labour markets in India, critically examines the labour processes and uncovers/describes precarious conditions of labour in various industries and occupations, and analyzes the dynamics involved in the making of industrial, employment and labour policies in contemporary India.
'Inclusive Growth, Full Employment, and Structural Change: Implications and Policies for Developing Asia' discusses policies to achieve inclusive growth in developing Asia, including agriculture, investment, certain state interventions, monetary, fiscal, and the role of the state as employer of last resort. Felipe argues that full employment of the labor force is the key to delivering inclusive growth. Full employment is the most direct way to improve the well-being of the people, especially of the most disadvantaged. Since unemployment and underemployment are pervasive in many parts of the region, Asian leaders must commit to the goal of full employment. The book also analyzes the region's phenomenal growth in recent decades in terms of structural transformation. Accelerating it is vital for the continued growth of developing Asia. But efforts to achieve full employment might be held back given that structural transformation requires massive labor shifts across sectors, and these are difficult to coordinate. Moreover, the goal of full employment was abandoned in the 1970s, and governments and central banks have since concentrated on keeping inflation low.
