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NEWS ALERTS | No protection for migrants in new labour laws
No protection for migrants in new labour laws

No protection for migrants in new labour laws

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published Published on Nov 16, 2014   modified Modified on May 9, 2016

In the midst of national debates over the need for labour laws reforms and the efficacy of MG-NREGA in checking distress migration, a new report brings spotlight on the miserable living and working conditions of unorganized migrant workers from Rajasthan.

Titled Their Own Country: A Profile of Labor Migration from Rajasthan, the report prepared jointly by Aajeevika Bureau and UNESCO informs us that 70% of seasonal migrant workers from Rajasthan do not have any social protection. Nearly 63% of such migrants do not possess any bank account and 29% of them do not possess any form of identification. It is worth noting that short-term or seasonal/circular migration, involves back and forth movement between a source and destination.

On one hand the recent amendments to the Industrial Disputes Act in Rajasthan allows companies employing up to 300 persons to fire employees or close down without taking prior approval from the Government, while on the other hand 68% of seasonal migrant workers in the state face legal disputes at work, which mostly go unreported. This not only indicates the precarious situation of migrant workers in the unorganized sector but also informalization of the so-called formal sector.

The recent amendments to the Contract Labour Act has given power to the companies - employing more than 50 workers - to hire more temporary workers without passing on to them the benefits contract workers are entitled to. The changes to the Industrial Disputes Act have made it difficult to register labour unions. This is because instead of 15% of workers, now 30% of workers in a factory need to join hands to form a union. The amended Factories Act is now applicable to the companies that employ more than 20 workers with electricity (instead of 10 earlier) and 40 workers without electricity (instead of 20 earlier), which is likely to reduce compliance burden of the corporate sector.

The key findings of the report entitled: Their Own Country: A Profile of Labor Migration from Rajasthan are as follows:

Size of migrant population

• 46% of rural households in Rajasthan have one or more members migrating for work, seasonally.

• 5.8 million people migrate seasonally from rural Rajasthan in search of work, comprising nearly 8% of the state's population.

Background of seasonal migrants

• 78% of seasonal migration comprises single male migrants and 20% are family migrants.

• 67% of the seasonal migrants are in the age group of 18-30 years.

• 50% of the migrant labour force comprises unskilled workers. SC (61%) and ST (57%) communities dominate seasonal migration.

• 88% of seasonal migrant population comprises men.

• 23% of seasonal male migrant population is illiterate, and another one third have primary education.

• 43% of seasonal male migrant population is inter-state migrants.

• The key work sectors where male migrant workers operate are construction, transportation (head-loading), mining, hotel and hospitality.

• The average wages of male migrant worker is Rs. 242 per day.

• 12% of seasonal migrants from Rajasthan are women.

• 54% of female seasonal migrants are from SC and ST households.

• 92% of female seasonal migrants are illiterate and 94% are intra-state workers

• The key work sectors where female migrant workers operate are construction, agriculture and brick-kilns.

• The average wages of female migrant worker is Rs. 135 per day.

Why do people migrate?

• Migrants from Rajasthan earn monthly wages worth Rs. 5060 on an average. Migration is the major source of cash income for 83% of migrant households.

Where do they migrate from?

• Largest migrant sending districts are Jodhpur, Barmer, Dungarpur and Udaipur.

Where do they migrate to?

• Gujarat accounts for 51% of inter-state migration.

• Maharashtra is the second most popular destination.

• Ahmedabad, Surat and Mumbai comprise the 3 key inter-state city destinations.

• Jaipur and Jodhpur are major intra-state work destinations.

Key challenges for seasonal migrant workers

Identity and access to services

• Absence of identification proof and documentation, which adversely affects access to entitlements including PDS, financial services etc.

• Absence of any political status and voice at their destinations as a result of which the seasonal migrants are largely unserved and unattended.

Skills, wages and social protection

• Seasonal migrant workers are vulnerable to low and uncertain wages, unstable jobs, no social security, no legal aid and even bondage in several work sectors.

• They have limited avenues to upgrade skills as a result of which they face early stagnation plus involuntary and early return.

Increased health risks

• Due to overcrowded dwellings with poor sanitation and water, migrants are at high risk of contracting infectious diseases including tuberculosis.

• They are susceptible to occupational hazards and increased risk of HIV/AIDS.

• Inter-state migrants especially face poor access to state health services such RSBY and JSY.

Vulnerable families

• Families which are left behind due to seasonal migration have to cope with exclusion and an aggravated lack of access to services.

• Children migrating with parents are deprived of education, immunization and early child care. They tend to join the labour force early.

Key policy recommendations

• Setting up of the Rajasthan Migrant and Unorganized Labour Protection and Welfare Authority that combines regulatory, vigilance and welfare functions.

• Formation of an Inter-state Coordination Committee comprising representatives from both Rajasthan and key destination states such as Gujarat and Maharashtra so as to monitor work and living conditions of migrant workers, review special schemes and offer recommendations to industry and urban authorities for improvement in the conditions of migrant workers.

• Creation of a fast track mechanism for effective regulation, vigil and swift legal address of migrants' work related disputes.

• Creation of a system of portability of entitlements such as food security, healthcare and financial services.

References

Their Own Country: A Profile of Labor Migration from Rajasthan, UNESCO/ Aajeevika Bureau, 17 October, 2014 (Please click here to access)

Press Note: Achievements and Initiatives in the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Press Information Bureau, 8 September, 2014 (Please click here to access)

Social Inclusion of Internal Migrants in India (2013), by UNICEF, UNESCO and Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (Please click here to access)

Industrial Disputes (Rajasthan Amendment) Bill 2014 (Please click here to access) 

Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) (Rajasthan Amendment) Bill 2014 (Please click here to access) 

Factories (Rajasthan Amendment) Bill 2014 (Please click here to access) 

Key Rajasthan labour reforms get President's approval -Prashant K Nanda, Livemint, 8 November, 2014,

President okays Rajasthan labour reforms: Firms with 300 workers need no govt nod to sack -Somesh Jha, Business Standard, 8 November, 2014

Image Courtesy: Himanshu Joshi



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