Unify the labour market

Time to end divisions between permanent and contract workers

It has been quite clear that the group of Indians most immediately hurt by the effects of the nationwide lockdown have been migrant workers. Those who lived pay cheque to pay cheque or often on daily wage found themselves without support after the declaration of the lockdown, and sought refuge by returning to their native places. While, in the short term, this reflects the need to ensure better communication of the lockdown as well as expansion of welfare facilities in urban areas, in the medium to longer term, it has major implications for the labour market more generally. It is