Economy

IAS Parliament 7 years

KEY POINTS

Issues

· Not enough jobs are being created – The Indian labour market is not working.

· Many young people, who need jobs most, cannot find them.

· Informalisation of the economy – Employers are hiring more workers whenever they need them, but they hire them mostly as contract workers or casual workers, and not as regular workers whom they would have to pay more.

· Moreover, the contract labours can easily be fired.

· Lack of Skilled people – not enough jobs are created, because there are not enough skilled people to hire.

· Even though, if people are given training, due to lack of quality training, Indian market becomes swamped with trained yet unemployed people.

· Archaic laws – India’s labour laws are archaic, too many, often contradictory, and badly administered.

Reform measures

· The expansion of the social safety net in India, to cover a variety of occupations and enterprises, will have to be the principal thrust of labour market reforms.

· Because, this will ensure fair treatment of workers as they will no longer depend on employers as well as create more flexibility to employers to fire their workers who are lacking skills.

· In the labour market, employers, who are the buyers of labour, also have a critical role to play in developing an adequate supply of skilled labour.

· Employers should put their full commitment to retain and invest in people.

· The government is simplifying and consolidating the laws in to a few codes, but the reformed laws must have to suit the emerging conditions.

· Reforms must be made with consensus amongst workers and their unions, and employers and their associations.

· Trust between employers and workers must be increased.

· India must strengthen the social compact and build a strong industrial base democratically with consensus amongst the unions and employers.