If we talk about India, we can find that 93 percent of the total workforce is in the unorganized sector. A significant proportion of the population is unemployed, underemployed. 2.1 percent of the total population is disabled. 50 percent of the population survives on 14.8 percent resources in rural areas and 10.2 percent in urban areas. According to the National Sample Survey Organization (2009 - 10), the total employment in the unorganized sector was 43.7 crore (GOI, 2014-15, p.65) which does not have any universal comprehensive social security system. According to Census (2001), 314.54 million persons migrated from their place of residence within the country and out of this, 29.90 million or 9% have left their place for work (GOI, 2014-15, p.69). According to MOLE annual report (2014-15, p.86) there are 43.53 lakh as per the Census 2011.
This is not all the incidence of resource-less destitution, victims of various incidents/accidents and cruelty is very high in our society which makes them unable to secure themselves. The concern is more for them, because most of them are neither covered by any formal system of social security nor they receive minimum standards of employment. Though, there are a number of (about 165) central and state legislations which regulate their conditions and provide them security in certain circumstances called as organized. But the situation is very serious because of various constraints and terms-conditions in the other section termed as unorganized sector. These legislations have extremely limited coverage and lack of proper enforcement machinery to the organized sector itself to whom that is basically to provide social security coverage. Unorganized sector is fully dependent on very negligible inputs provided through very unreasonable security coverage. The complex process of disbarment of benefits further shrinks their objectives.
Various constraints embedded in their conditions play a very crucial role in framing a universal protective system for the unorganized sector. Some of the constraints can be stipulated as follows:
(1) Difficulty in identifying the employer, particularly in small and tiny establishments. Lack of permanent or stable linkage between employer and employee that precludes schemes based on employer’s contributions.
(2) Difficulty in establishing the employer-employee relationship particularly in case of daily or casual labour because of reasons like, non-issuance of the letter appointment by the employer and non– maintaining the muster roll registers like employment records in other industries. The interests of the workers working in some of the industries are badly affected because of this.
(3) New system of outsourcing has made the process of identification more difficult as the agencies have various measures to hide their identity in the form of changing the company’s names after a certain time period to avoid liabilities. This ensures low and unstable wages and lack of round the year employment which precludes schemes based on employee’s contribution. This is putting the permanent nature of jobs in the category of temporary. It is opening up new ways of exploitation of workers in the form of making the employment of casual nature. This also precludes them from the benefits like sick leave, maternity leave, etc.
(4) The workers in the unorganized sector are dispersed, unorganized and have poor bargaining power in general. Terms of employment restricts them not to raise their voices against various levels of exploitation. Seasonality of employment and lack of sustainable employment make them more vulnerable to the risks and set their return to their origin after short term migration. This breaks the continuity and the process of integration.
(5) Low legislative protection due to the scattered and dispersed nature of employment prevents their accessibility to the formal social security system.
(6) Inadequacy of welfare measures make it more difficult to reach them due to lack of organization, budget constraints and other factors. The high cost involved in their coverage impels the social security administration to shrink from the challenge.
(7) Unlike the organized sector where steady and regular employment is more or less a given fact, unorganized sector workers need employment security, income security and social security simultaneously.
(8) The industries like, brick kiln, mining and quarrying, etc. are notorious in exploiting the rights of the workers. Keeping this in view, Courts have also insisted that the burden of proof lies upon the workmen that they were employed for the requisite period. They are exploited at every level by mediators also. In the process of bringing the labour to the worksite, there is great scope for the intermediaries. They bring these workers to the sites and thus, are restricted to various conditions. As a result, organizing the migrant labour becomes more problematic and difficult, since they hardly interact with the local labour. The cheap labour of the migrant labour creates pressure on the local labour to reduce the wages and even deny them employment.
(9) Self employed persons like, domestic servants, women, hawkers, rickshaw-pullers, small shopkeepers, street vendors, etc, have specific problems. Among the major hurdles are ignorance and illiteracy, heterogeneity, seasonal employment, uncertainty in jobs, money collection by local police and authorities;
(10) The attitude of the government machinery at the ground level has become another major impediment. There is no effective system to check whether the workmen are being paid minimum wages. Even Labour Officer, who ought to be more concerned about the problems of labour and ensure the implementation of the labour laws come often from the same class background as the employers of rural labour and share the perceptions and prejudices of the later;
Whatever may be the obstacles or constraint, it is unfortunate that workers in the informal economy, despite their significant contribution to the national income, are continuously at risk. They frequently face crises in their lives if any eventualities occur or any accident/incident happens they find themselves nowhere. Thus there is an urgent need to provide social security to all of them. Time has come to initiate a protective social security system that is inclusive of all workers in the informal economy. This is necessary because workers' Social security is considered “right to life” which is basically inherent in the right to livelihood. Further, social security is based on the ideals of social justice and human dignity. It provides for security against risks of want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness by social insurance and social assistance or by any other innovative method or combination of all or any of these devices. Therefore denial of social security would be against human rights, right to life, human dignity and social justice. There is an urgent need for providing social security. It should be viewed from the other angels like, coverage, quantum of benefit, etc. in the unorganized sector in India.
It is unfortunate that the overwhelming majority of unorganized labour who constitute 93 percent of the total labour force, notwithstanding their contribution to the national economy. Their increasing importance in globalization, are not playing any role in the process of providing them protection of various Central and State legislation relating to social security. The legislations relating to social security have so far been confined to the organized sector. Whatever may be the justification for not providing social security legislation, we cannot ignore the interest of the majority of the people contributing significantly and the State cannot act as a silent spectator and helpless entity.
State should not behave like that because it is the state which has to set the desired direction of the society. The state is liable to establish an economy and all are finally aimed at establishing the peace and harmony in the society. The efforts made since now are not at all enough to protect the majority. Thus the state should take action towards evolving a universal social security system. Because, the ultimate aim of the governance also lies in ensuring a better future, better resources irrespective of human and material, etc. to give a desired direction to the society. The ultimate goal lies in setting up a social structure, able to handle most difficult situations arising out of the side of nature or from any of the forces. The most important in this regard is to set the best means for development for the existing society and setting a good future keeping in mind the overall development of future generations. The generations whose development can be best set by the inputs provided. Their being healthy in terms of the mind and body will ensure a long lasting strong and healthy nation which has already reached a transition phase. A sizable segment is deprived of getting nutrition, so as for education, shelter, employment, etc. the basic securities for a decent life. That throws them not only in abysmal poverty but motivates them to search avenues irrespective of their acceptability or unacceptability. The graph of the crimes is increasing day by day. That is not all but such heinous acts are happening which are not at all a symbol of a healthy society.
Causes are embedded in the structure itself and the feeling of insecurity plays an important role in throwing individuals to such extremes which is not only detrimental or destructive to their individual existence, but also dangerous to their families, group, society and all.
Thus, the standards and extent of protection measures should not be set and standardized. Its accessibility to all sections should be ensured. Such a reasonable social security can assist the process of evolution of the potentials in the individuals which can inculcate the desired principles and morals among the members of the society is yet to be evolved and established.
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