Employment News
Small towns getting big deal for jobs
India's job market is moving out of its metropolises and into its tier-2 and -3 cities. The middle class is growing at its most rapid pace in these towns, and both white and blue collar employment is tracking the associated rise in consumption. Financial services are radiating out, creating strong demand for manpower. Technology is pushing the gig economy into the hinterland. GoI and state governments are doing their bit, too, by plugging connectivity and infrastructure gaps.
White-collar hiring falls 6% in August on cautious sentiment in IT, auto sectors: report
In August this year there were 2,666 job postings, as against 2,828 job postings in the year-ago period
MGNREGS work demand increases 20% on low August rains, shows data
This does not include the COVID-impacted years of 2020-21 and 2021-22 when work demand for August was higher. Around 19.16 million households sought work under the flagship Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in August 2023.
Women in the Workforce
The Stories of Women Who Migrate Alongside Their Husbands to Work as 'Helpers'
Due to lack of opportunities in southern Rajasthan, newly married women from Udaipur's Gogunda Block migrate with their husbands to Gujarat and Maharashtra. They work with their husbands for a combined income in the kitchens of hotels and hostels. Tara, a mother of three young daughters, Ganga, Monika and Geeta, works in a hotel in Rajkot with her husband. For the last four years, she has been cooking in the hotel’s kitchen. She has left behind two of her daughters with her relatives in Gogunda.
Asha workers’ strike enters 23rd day; Haryana minister Anil Vij says state already pays highest allowance in country
Asha workers earn on an incentive basis and get paid for immunisation and other related health services. On an average, an Asha worker in Haryana earns between Rs 7,000 and Rs 9,000 every month.
The Gig Economy
'9,000 gig workers may have to forgo daily earnings'
The Forum for Internet Retailers, Sellers & Traders (FIRST) has estimated that about 9,000 gig workers may have to forgo their daily earnings because of the suspension of commercial activities in certain areas under the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) for three days during G20. They earn around Rs 450 on an average per day, said Vinod Kumar, president at FIRST.
Rising Fuel Costs, Consumer Price Inflation Dragged Down Real Wages of Gig Workers in 2022: Report
Rising fuel costs and consumer price inflation led to an 11% fall in the real wages of gig workers per month in 2022, the Financial Express reported. Real wages of gig workers fell to Rs 11,963 per month in 2022 as compared to 2019, according to a study by the National Council of Applied Economic Research.
In the Courts
If employer at fault, full back wages can be granted to terminated staff
The Gujarat High Court recently ruled that when an employee is terminated, the back wages do not automatically get awarded when the employee is reinstated. However, the High Court also clarified that if the employer is at fault in the termination case, then full back wages can be granted by the Labour Court.
Mizoram: Special Court sentences PWD JE to 4 years in jail
Guwahati: The Special Judge H T C Lalrinchhana convicted C Lalfakawma, a Junior Engineer (JE) of the Mizoram Public Works Department (PWD) in connection with a corruption case. The JE was convicted under section 409 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and under section 13 (2) read with 13 (1) (a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 on Monday.
Case filed against media workers in Manipur: Editors Guild of India in Supreme Court
The Editors Guild of India approached the Supreme Court against the Manipur government’s action against media workers. The Editors’ Guild approached the Supreme Court demanding the cancellation of the cases against three journalists who visited Manipur and prepared a fact-finding report.
Supreme Court to hear Editors Guild plea for protection in Manipur FIRs
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear during the day a plea by the Editors Guild of India seeking protection from coercive action in two FIRs lodged in Manipur against some of its members.
Profiles
The travelling teacher of Lidder valley
When pastoral families migrate to the upper Himalayas, they take their young children with them. Travelling teachers like Ali Mohammed follow and ensure that the primary schoolers stay up-to-date and in class. A story in time for Teacher's Day.
'Love makes you a good teacher'
This Teacher’s Day, PARI celebrates special educators who teach people with disabilities. They show how patience and persistence along with boundless love for their students is the cornerstone of all good teaching. “Unconditional love for my students and total acceptance. That is what I have learned as a teacher!” Medha Tengshe, a special educator, offers her point, gently but firmly.
News from States
Over 2,000 Govt Employees Transferred To Safer Districts In Manipur: Report
The employees have been transferred to districts where they would face no threats as tensions continue to divide Manipur's Meitei and tribal communities. The transfers come amid a deep sense of insecurity even among government employees. Since the outbreak of violence in Manipur on May 3, a trust-deficit has developed between the state's Meitei and tribal communities.
Kuki MLAs Seek Separate Chief Secretary & DGP Posts for Manipur's 5 Hills Districts
"It is pertinent to mention that even IAS and MCS (Manipur civil service) officers and IPS and MPS (Manipur police service) officers belonging to the Kuki-Zo tribes have been unable to function and discharge their duties as Imphal Valley has also become a valley of death for us," the legislators stated in their memorandum. "In order to solve the problems faced by government employees belonging to Kuki-Zo tribes and for efficient administration of the districts inhabited by us, the post of chief secretary or its equivalent post and the post of DGP or equivalent post need to be immediately created," the letter added
Manipur body imposes economic blockade over demand of MGNREGA funds release
AMTDGF President Hesho Lorho and General Secretary Gangonglung Khumba in a jointly signed statement said that the state government’s “adamant stand” not to release sufficient funds for all sixteen districts led a serious economic crisis among the people living in the interior and tribal dominated areas.
Manipur govt deputes specialist doctors and other health workers at Foreigners Detention Centre
The Manipur government has taken action to address concerns raised by the Manipur Human Rights Commission (MHRC) regarding the health care facilities at the Foreigners Detention Centre in Sajiwa. The MHRC chairperson expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of specialist doctors, particularly a gynaecologist, at the Foreigners Detention Centre, Sajiwa (Imphal) where 136 foreigners, mostly Myanmarese, have been lodged.
Tea planters bat for hourly wage rate for garden workers
The planters’ body also lauded the Assam government initiative to organise a multi-stakeholder consultation in the presence of representatives of International Labour Organisation (ILO). ILO representatives maintained that sustainability of the tea industry should be taken into consideration while fixing the wages, TAI said. Tea garden workers in the Brahmaputra valley of Assam currently get Rs 232 as daily wage, while the rate in Barak valley is Rs 210.
Meghalaya health dept to re-advertise jobs for mid-level health providers
Shillong: The Meghalaya Health Department has decided to re-advertise the recruitment of Middle Level Health Providers (MLHP) for 2023. This decision comes in response to a backlash, primarily from the Garo Hills region, due to the lack of equal opportunity for all to apply for MLHP vacancies. “It is shocking to the people of Garo Hills that in the circular, not a single Garo or local candidate was selected for the post of MLHP, despite all the vacancies being in the Garo Hills Region,” Pritam Arengh, the President of FKJGP (Garo Hills) said.
Analysis
Data | Cost of preparing meals at home rose by 65% in five years, wages by just 28%-37%
The cost of a home-cooked vegetarian thali in Mumbai has increased by 65% in the last five years. At the same time, the average wage earned by a casual labourer working in urban Maharashtra has increased by only 37% and that of a salaried worker has increased by 28%.
Tailpiece
Tata Steel to provide employees with a yearly bonus of Rs 314.70 crore
As a part of a memorandum of settlement, Tata Steel has announced Rs 314.70 crore as the annual bonus payout for its employees for fiscal year 2023. The steel company has reached this settlement with the Tata Workers’ Union… the range for the annual bonus for 2022-23 will vary from a minimum of Rs 42,561 to a maximum of Rs 4,61,019.
Layoffs and Hirings
Startups take measures to ease their employees out
Putting more people on performance improvement plans, setting unrealistic targets to be met in a short period, freezing hikes and variable pay as well as creating pressure in the form of extended office hours and compulsory work from office are some of the measures that companies are adopting to ease people out.
History
Lean Manufacturing, Straitened Labour
An oral history of the struggles of Maruti workers comes at a crucial time where the larger labour movement finds itself defending hard-won rights. Deshpande and Haksar talk to several Maruti workers a decade after their struggle ground to an abrupt end and put together a raw and immediate account of how it shaped their individual and collective lives. The book allows one to hear workers’ articulation of their experiences of industrial work; relationships with fellow workers, family, and employers; their view of the State and its various institutions; and the fast-changing world around them.