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India – Ciett calls on India to adopt ILO Convention 181

21 August 2014

In a speech in New Delhi yesterday, Annemarie Muntz, President of the International Confederation of Private Employment Agencies (Ciett) urged Indian lawmakers and stakeholders to further develop the private employment services industry in India.

Ciett is currently working with the Indian Staffing Federation (ISF) to encourage greater acceptance and usage of temporary worker by Indian businesses, known locally as flexi staff.

A research report commissioned by the ISF, shows that within the formal labour market, the majority of the workforce is engaged on a temporary basis, often in a casual way. However, of the 397.4 million people working in the Indian labour market, only permanent workers (21.9 million) and an estimated four million temporary workers are protected under labour laws; such as the minimum wage act and laws that regulate medical and social insurance and benefits. 

One of the largest recruiters of flexi staff in the formal sector is the government, with as many as 27.8 formal sector workers, working in some capacity for the government at the end of 2013, with an estimated 12.3 million (44%) of them were in temporary jobs. 

However, efficient and flexible labour markets depend on how appropriately agency work, and other forms of flexible labour, are regulated. On a scale of 0–6, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) measures the strictness of regulation on temporary work and fixed-term contracts. With an overall score of 2.54, India has stricter legislation that the OECD average of 2.08.

Despite the above average legislation already in place, Ciett and the ISF have jointly called on India’s lawmakers to fully implement ILO Convention 181, which stipulates, among other things, that private employment agencies should not charge workers any fees or costs for their services and they should provide adequate protection for, and prevent the abuse of, migrant workers. 

For further information on the Indian staffing market, click here