Labour in Global Production Networks

Since the advent of liberalization in India in 1991, much attention has been directed towards India's substantial economic growth rates, the pressures of globalisation on its labour market, and its potential role in the global economy in future. Though there have been studies on India's position in the global economy, relatively few studies have examined how engagement with global production networks is impacting upon companies and workers in India.
This volume reveals that economic growth in India has created new opportunities for large and small firms, as well as new jobs for both highly-skilled workers and relatively low-skilled workers. However, the impact is uneven, even as opportunities for larger firms at the top of supply chains filter downwards. Moreover, economic upgrading does not necessarily translate into improved terms and conditions in the job, especially for workers embedded in lower tiers of global production networks. Instead, vulnerable jobs are on the rise for workers in the unorganised sector, and for some workers in the organised sector as well. With detailed sector-level studies spanning labour-intensive, skill-intensive and knowledge-intensive industries, this volume provides an analytical perspective on labour in an increasingly globalised economy. It further discusses how global production could be harnessed to yield better quality and more evenly-spread opportunities for firms and workers. Timely and topical, this book will appeal to scholars and researchers working on labour and employment studies, urban studies and gender studies; economists, political scientists, sociologists, administrators and policymakers, industry associations, and international institutions.

Anne Posthuma is Senior Researcher, International Labour Organization, Geneva, Switzerland Dev Nathan is Visiting Professor, Institute for Human Development, New Delhi