Internal Migration and Gender: Insights from Indian Labour Market S. K. Sasikumar, Senior Fellow V.V. Giri National Labour Institute Presentation to the Institute of Social Studies Trust - Heinrich Böll Stiftung Institute of Social Studies Trust - Heinrich Böll Stiftung Policy Discussion on: Migration – Implications for Gender and Equity April 16, 2014

Focus of the Presentation Conceptualising contemporary labour mobility and understanding migration paradox Emerging Issues in internal migration in India and its implications for gender and equity Transformations in the Indian labour market and its impact on gender issues in migration Towards evolving a gender sensitive migration policy framework 2

Conceptualising Contemporary Labour Mobility Accelerated movement of people in search of employment emerging as a key feature of the contemporary world of work However, there is a structural disarticulation between economic growth and labour mobility – “Migration Paradox” 3

Measurement Issues  Most migration indicators measure stocks of migrant population and severely underenumerate migration flows  While life time migrants is adequately represented, that of short term, seasonal, circular and commuting migration is inadequately measured Growing informalisation of employment relations and absorption of overwhelming proportion of migrants into informal economy 4 Conceptualising Contemporary Labour Mobility

Internal Migration: Recent Trends Factors Modulating Labour Flows Capitalist penetration in rural areas creating a pool of ‘mobile population’ who are in search of some means of livelihoods Informal networks, including personal networks, emerging as the dominant agency which is perpetuating contemporary migration Accordingly, a sizeable proportion of migrants are not recruited through contractors 5

Internal Migration: Recent Trends Migrant Labour Market Several occupations in major receiving regions becoming ‘migrant-centric’ (domestics, informal transport, hawkers) Substantial proportion of those migrants engaged in lower end of the job hierarchy  In construction more than 90 per cent of the migrant workers are engaged as unskilled workers/helpers  For women, in the lowest level of occupational hierarchy, prospects for upward occupational mobility more or less absent 6

Migrant Labour Market Growing irregularity of employment for migrants in the destination regions Wage-cost reduction, a key incentive to deploy migrant workers  Prevailing wages in most migrant-centric occupations tend to be below the prescribed minimum wages Increasing intolerance towards migrant workers 7 Internal Migration: Recent Trends

Entitlement of Migrant Workers Migrants often encounter weak entitlements at the destination They are denied access to benefits under public distribution system Many studies report denial of treatment to migrant workers in government hospitals As a result most of the migrants encounter social and economic insecurity, this seems to be particularly true for women migrants 8 Internal Migration: Recent Trends

Organisation and Awareness Large segment of the migrant workers remain unorganised and hence have very weak bargaining power Awareness among the migrant workers on their rights and entitlements are relatively very low Weak implementation of various labour legislations targeted towards migrant workers 9 Internal Migration: Recent Trends

Organisation and Awareness Recent evidences point to increasing effort towards encouraging collectivity among migrants and improving their awareness  Such instances though minimal have positive influences on improving the social and economic conditions of migrant workers (organising of construction workers, organising of street vendors, organising of domestic maids, organising of contract workers) 10 Internal Migration: Recent Trends

Interconnect of Labour Market Trends and Migration Indian labour market in the midst of a major structural change Movement from agriculture gaining momentum in recent years Most of such flows are directed to construction with low skill content and productivity levels Strong need to facilitate structural mobility 11

Interconnect of Labour Market Trends and Migration Accelerated pace of informalisation of the organised sector labour market Significant proportion of those engaged as informal labour are migrants and those belonging to the socially disadvantaged Ensuring social security entitlements very critical to protect the informal workers and promote equity 12

Evolving Gender Sensitive Responses to Migration: Way Forward Need to view internal labour mobility within the framework of migration and development Better co-ordination between various stakeholders working on migration Improve skills and bargaining power of migrants and regulate conditions of work 13

Need to revise Inter State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979 in the context of:  Inadequate coverage of legislation  Lack of benefits accruing to the migrant workers  Problems related to the portability benefits  Lack of guidelines for Inter State Coordination  Lack of sufficient penalty/conviction for violation of the Act  Delays in settlement of claims 14 Evolving Gender Sensitive Responses to Migration: Way Forward

Set up Migrant Resource Centre at major regions of labour origin and destination Improve information base on migration—gender disaggregated data, addressing definitional problems, reliability and frequency of data 15 Evolving Gender Sensitive Responses to Migration: Way Forward

Thank You 16