Program
This talk will examine changing labor markets in India and argue that labor-abundant India is also subject to the same contemporary OECD pressures of jobless growth brought about by increasing investments in capital equipment, automation, and growing (but proportionately smaller) reliance on high skilled workers and professionals. Furthermore, unlike major OECD countries, India is not experiencing the classic agrarian transition thereby condemning many in low-productivity agriculture, off-farm work, or inducing migration. One implication of this development is that the non-agricultural sectors are driving the Indian economy. However, it is also evident the share of industry to GDP has been relatively stagnant. While there are multiple and contested reasons for the relative stagnation of industry the limited employment growth in manufacturing is undeniable. Notwithstanding India’s competitiveness in tradable services much of the services employment is driven by low-value, labor-intensive services, which are often carried out by the large and persistent informal or unorganized sector. These developments along with the selective downsizing of the public sector and increased reliance by the private sector on contract and temporary workers have substantially reduced “decent” job opportunities in India.
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