News from States
‘Hand-written messages’ in Gurugram target Muslim workers
Posters threatening Muslim migrant workers to leave and warning that their hutments will be set on fire have triggered panic in some sectors of Gurugram, with police saying that strict action will be taken against those responsible, and Hindu groups saying they had nothing to do with the act.
Truck driver, helper attacked in Gurgaon over appearance, clothes
GURGAON: Three Muslim men were allegedly attacked in the city by different groups of youths who asked their names and objected to what they were wearing. Nasir Hussain, a truck driver from Nuh, and his helper Ashfaq were returning home after delivering a consignment when two men in a car stopped them near Sector 65 around 11pm on Friday. The attacks coincide with the call for a Brij Mandal Jalabhishek yatra in Nuh.
Haryana govt wants private sector to hire 75% local residents, but youth don’t want factory jobs
Haryana law reserving 75% of private sector jobs for state residents, up to a salary of Rs 30,000, came into effect last January. But jobless youth are not keen on blue-collar work.
MP: Forest Fires Threaten Livelihoods of 'Dona-Pattal' Makers in Betul
Once always accessible, Mahur leaves are getting difficult to find in Madhya Pradesh's forests; residents blame forest fires. Suhane worries that his marginal profits are also at risk due to increasing difficulty procuring Bauhinia vahlii leaves. “The forests are shrinking, and the existing ones see frequent fires in the summer, due to which leaves are not easily available,” he adds.
Labour shortage at Karnataka plantations, poll freebies blamed
BENGALURU: Karnataka could be staring at a farm labour crisis, with Congress’s poll freebies being blamed for a section of the skilled workforce opting for a life on dole… Coffee plantations, which employ 5 lakh-odd out of the 30 lakh farm workforce, are already facing a shortage of skilled labourers eligible for benefits like 10kg of free rice, Rs 2,000 a month to every woman head of a family, free bus rides for women and 200 units of electricity. Bose Mandanna N, former vice-chairman of Coffee Board of India, blamed “a lot of freebies" for the sudden shortage of labourers.
‘Disburse salaries to staff on time’: Kerala HC tells KSRTC
Regarding the issue of regular distribution of salaries to Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) employees, the Kerala High Court has passed a ruling stating that the KSRTC needs to give salaries by the 10th of every month. The court order also directed that the state government should provide the required assistance to the KSRTC to make this happen.
Months after ‘scrapping’ contract system, Odisha to hire 20,000 teachers on yearly basis
A union leader says that fully qualified recruits will have to work with a monthly pay of Rs 11,000 for around six years.
The Gig Economy
More qualified food delivery workers earn less than urban peers
A survey by think tank NCAER covering workers of an app-based food delivery platform showed that an average platform worker put in 69.3 hours a week, as against 56 hours for a worker covered by the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) — which means he worked 23% extra.
Big Problems, Small Wins Social Security for Rajasthan's Gig Workers
Despite good intentions, much in the new Rajasthan gig workers act is built on weak foundations, which will make it difficult to implement…First, it subscribes to a tried and tested model of a welfare board, which is both flawed and inefficient. Second, the board is charged with registering platforms and aggregators in the state. The platforms and aggregators are required to share their database of workers with the board. But many platforms and aggregators that engage workers in the state will be outside the jurisdiction of this legislation, ultimately affecting both the resources and the reach of the board.
Rajasthan’s Gig and Platform Workers Welfare Act: empowering the young worker
The very act of recognising gig/platform workers by ensuring that every worker on any platform has a unique ID that would anchor all future benefits for them makes the Act a landmark one.
Gig Workers Bill: reading between the lines
There are four major issues that could possibly constrict the remit and reach of the Bill. One is that by not defining the gig workers as employees, the bill is limited in its ability to integrate existing labour laws into its ambit.
Exporting Workers
Skilling of care workers on cards; govt to train healthcare staff under Heal by India initiative
The government will train nurses and allied healthcare professionals under its ‘Heal by India’ initiative, as it looks to provide a skilled workforce to meet the massive increase in demand projected for care givers worldwide. The plan is to create a pool of nurses and care workers and help India to become the “care capital” of the world, a senior government official told ET.
Bonded Labour
Hired to dig a well they were kept chained inside it for week
Workers rescued from Maharashtra’s Osmanabad district say they were lured by the promise of big wages only to be starved and tortured by contractors
Odisha: Delayed Rehab Funds, Scarce Jobs Push Rescued Workers Back to Bonded Labour
"We haven't received any skill development training. Opportunities are scarce. After the rescue, we're left to fend for ourselves,” said a worker from Kalahandi district. Kumari Bag lives with her husband and six children. She has been rescued twice from bondage in brick kilns and still awaits rehabilitation assistance.
Video: Slavery In New India: The Deadly Cycle Of Odisha's Bonded Labourers
A short video accompanying the series of investigative reports carried on Worker Web last week
Employment News
18.3% MGNREGS workers out of Aadhaar-based wage system
The fourth extension for mandatory payments under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS) via Aadhaar Based Payments System (ABPS) ended on August 31. As the numbers stand, out of the total 26 crore job card holders, 41.1% are still not eligible for this mode of payment. The Ministry of Rural Development has ruled out any more extensions, arguing that among the active workers, only 18.3% are ineligible.
Promotions Are also Being Passed Off as New Jobs to Inflate Figures of Rozgar Melas: Report
These job drives are being held once a month from October 2022, with Prime Minister Narendra addressing each of these events virtually. Appointment letters are given away to 'fresh job takers', according to the government.
Over 1.5 crore jobs created in nine organised sectors under Modi government: Union Minister Bhupender Yadav
According to Union Minister for Labour and Employment Bhupender Yadav, over 1.5 crore jobs have been created in nine sectors during the nine-year rule of the Narendra Modi government. These sectors include IT, manufacturing, trade, transport, education, hospitality, medical, agriculture, and others. Yadav also highlighted the increase in manufacturing capacities, registration of new industries, and enrollment in the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), indicating positive employment growth.
Tailpiece
What if employers could gauge the ‘moods’ of workers? A dangerous new tech gains ground in India
Emotion recognition systems are finding growing use, from monitoring customer responses to ads to scanning for ‘distressed’ women in danger. AI start-ups are offering Indian employers the “dark personality inventory” that claims to identify “negative” traits like self-obsession and impulsiveness in potential hires. “Human Resources tech” features claims of providing emotion recognition systems to classify the mood of employees as they walk into their workplace.
Working Class Lives
Livelihood on hold, homes behind hoardings, slum dwellers ask: How are we supposed to survive?
Passing by the Bhairon Marg stretch, one is greeted with a wall made of hoardings announcing the G-20 summit. Hidden behind the walls, though, are slums housing several families, who say they have lost their daily earnings after their roadside stalls and makeshift shops were removed by the authorities in view of the mega event. As the two-day event inches closer, residents of the slum cluster, known as Hafiz Nagar, say they have been asked to even reduce their movements and not “roam around much” in the area.
Exploited Workers
How Indians Are Endangering The Health of Their Domestic Workers: New Study
A new report by non profit Jagori paints a grim picture of the way Indians treat their 50 million domestic workers—a quarter of those surveyed said they were prohibited from using the same utensils as their employers; 18% had no access to food or water at their workplace and 13 % didn’t get leave when they fell sick. The report highlights the health impact of their hazardous workplaces i.e. the Indian home. Many other countries in the region do far more than India does for domestic workers.
Forest Workers
Two recent forest guard deaths in Asia’s second largest biosphere reserve spur reforms
In the past three months, one forest guard and a forest ranger have been gunned down inside the Similipal Tiger Reserve in Odisha, Asia’s second-largest biosphere reserve. The deaths led to widespread protests by non-gazetted forest department officials seeking better security and immunity. In the days that followed, there have been multiple reforms, while many other proposals are being mulled over to prevent such incidents.