A framework for labour policy reforms in India: Balancing economic growth and social development

Abstract

Purpose

This paper seeks to develop a framework for Indian labour reforms that lay emphasis on economic growth and social development by balancing growth needs of firms and socio‐economic imperatives of a developing nation. It proposes four management systems and details their interactional dynamics at three levels, namely, at the level of economic security, employment regulation and system flexibility.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper provides a literature review of current developments in India with respect to employment, and an analysis of existing labour relations frameworks for similar country contexts.

Findings

Labour relations in developing countries is characterised by recent shift to market driven external environment, economically vulnerable surplus labour, low skills, inflexible employment laws, politicised unions with low labour representation, and low corporate involvement in governance. There is a need for policy changes that incorporate economic stability for labour, employment regulation for organisational flexibility, union management for true representation and corporate contribution in labour security and governance.

Originality/value

While market driven, privatization policy regime, are being adopted as a strategy by developing economies to promote economic growth, the resultant need for constant innovation faced by the organisations demand a new policy system for effective labour regulation. Governments are unable to define an effective labour relations policy, constrained and discouraged by the difficulty in balancing the socio‐economic complexity of a developing country. The framework proposed in this paper is a multilevel model, which allows for more efficient and socially effective balance between needs of the firm and the labour.

Citation

Gurtoo, A. (2008), "A framework for labour policy reforms in India: Balancing economic growth and social development", International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Vol. 28 No. 11/12, pp. 472-484. https://doi.org/10.1108/01443330810915198