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CHAPTER I
1. Construction ::)ector as an Informal Sector
2. Role of Cons+.ruct.i on Indus+.ry in Economic Development.
3. E.rapl oyment. in the Building Indust.'ry
4. Types of Labourers in the Building Industry
5. B!:l.ilding Cost
6. Review of Li terat.ure
71 The :Problem of Study
8. Objectives of the Study
9. Reference Year
10. The Scope of S.tudy
11. Lirni t ah ons
12. Research He+:O.odol ogy
(A) Data RequiretJ.ent.
(B) Sample Design
(C) The Collection of Data
(D) ilample Size
(E) Gonce pt. and Definations
13. Analysis of Data.
1 •
CHAPTER I
lNTROilUGTJ.ON
"There are limits to the r~t-e at. which a country
can fruitfully st.ep up its capital for.:nat.ion. Of this,
the two most. important limits are shortage of skill and
inadequacy of public u-t.ili ties. Shor-t. age of skill not only
prevents people from using capitaL fruitfully; but sometimes
may prevent t.'::tem from using it. at. all. More t11an half of
capi-t.al format ion consists of work in const.ruction. Hence
the expansion of capital is a runct.ion of the rate at'which
the constrt1.Ct.ion industry can be expanded. Economic plans
ca..l'lnot. be executed if there are not the carpenters, t-he
. masons, til.e elec-t.ricians and the engineers to do -the necessary
construction, whether it. be of roads, bridges, da;as, fac+.ories,
t •• 1 power plan .s, houses or the rest.. Hence til.e const.ru.ct.ion
industry plays a very s-trategic role in the process of
economic devel op."J.ent of a country.
1. Construction 3ect.or as a.."l Infor.:nal Sector
Hea.."ling of lnfo:r;,Jal Se_ct.or .- The concept' inforJlal sector'
was first def~ned as t:1.at par+. of tne labour-force in urban
areas w:nlch is outside the orgo-"lised labour-•aar..cet.. It
---------------·------ ---1. Sir J.rt:1;1r Lewis- Tnc J:heory of Bconallic Gro~rth, London:
.Ulen and Uma:1, 1955.
! 2
comprises the mass of const.r uction labourers hawkers,
rickshaw Pullers, hotel bo,ys, shoeshine boys, domestic
servants, barbers, v.rashermen, thel avJal as, pan;ral as, waf.er
suppliers, accroba+e s and others.
Role in Urbm2E_:=:.~om,z :- Informal sect.or in the urba.Yl areas
is the major source of employment. for the urban poor. The
rate of growth of employment in the formal sector, owing
to it.s capit.al-latensive character, is very slo\~ t.o absorb
t.he increasing rate of grO\-lt-h of labour-force. The eraployment
in the informal sector is estimated to be 60-70 percent in
Nairobi, 50 percent in Jakarta and about 45 percent in
Calcutta, Bombay and .lh'1lnedabad.
The urban. informal sector gives ready-made
employment market to the rural migrants, Usually, the
ori~ns of int'ormal sector are att.ribut.ed to t.he massive
out.flovr of surpluslabourersfrom t.he agricultural sector in
the rural areas• These rural migrants form a substantial
part of the urban poor in informal sector. All rural poor
migrants are not. necessarily coming toe cities and towns to
set.tle down perrJla.Yle.ntly. Usually, migrat.ion of rural poor
including landless agricul+.ural labourers, marginal far;ners
and others, taKes place ::.t tne time of flood, drought. and
o+:ner natural calaui+.ies. Some of these people return t.o
ti1eir nat.ive places arter the natural cala.aity is over.
Thus, the informal sect or GHes soJle type of reliefs in the
people in tne drought-prone and 1'lood-affected areas.
3
The informal sector helpsp to some ex+.ent in
removing the seasonal unell).pl oyment wnong +he agricul +.ural
labourers, marginal and poor farmers. The income in the
ur'ban informal sec+.or may"be low but the chances of employ-
ment. in +his sect. or are much be-t-ter than J.n the rural are as.
Also the standard of l:ilving in urban areas with medical,
educa-t.ional and municipal facilities, however wret.cned they
may be, is higher t.ha.YJ. in the rural areas.
Chndren, old women, ha."ldJ.oapped and :naimed people
are found in the urban infor.nal sect.or. The formal sector
forbids employment. of children below a certain age, lays
down strict. conditions for tlle appoint.Jllent. of women and
requires particular levels of for;nal training. Woillen labou-
rers vlho face difficulties J.n get.+ing jobs in organised
indus+.rie s and government. de par+men t. s, are employed in t.he
informal sector as cons+ruct.ion labourers (knmm as "Rejas").
The for.nal sector mostly depends on t.he informal sector.
The informal sector's supply of cheap labou:rers to fonnal
sector is its main contribution to the urban economy. The
existence of +he formal sector is t.ot.ally impossible without.
+he help from the inforillal sector in all developing countries.
2. Role of Construction lndus+ry in E.conoJJ.ic Deve1o:2~1.ent
The role of construction indus+.ry .Ln econo:uc
develu!IJ,ent. need not oe over emphasised. 2 The thrust. of -lhe
2. H.an;;n;;:x 1-lur;;:se, Probleus of Capi+c,;l For.aa+ion in Un.lerdevelo<·ed Countries, Oxford, Jasll .alc.c;;:well, 1955 and ~ • .ti.rtimr LeHi s (in .t...!l. A,;:.rwal ;mi :=;. P. 5J.nc;h ( ed. ), The Scono:oJ.ics of Uniericveloo.nent, Oxfori U11iverS.LtJ Press, 1953. -
4
argwnent. has been that. construction industry prvduces capitaL
almost. without any capital and t.n1.1s const.itut.es a basic
component. in the development. programme for stimulating growth
in less developed countries. Studies have also put.forth
statistical evidence to shm~ that. const.ruct.ion sect.or' s
share in G.D.P. increases w:Lt.h t.he increasin8 pe!t'capita.
G.JJ, :p, 3 It. cannot. also be denied that. construction sector
makes an important. contrt.but.ion for meeting the basic
development. ob,je c+.i ve s including eGJ.ployment. ere ati on, output.
generation and income redistribution. 4
In any country, be it. de vel oped or de vel oping,
the construction acti vi t.y is a vi tat·: ~act.i vi ty. The constru-
ct.ion industry provides a means of transfor;ning the aspira-
+.ions for t.he social and economic well-being of a nation,
into reality b:f providing housing, industrial and infra-
structural facilities. Thus it creates.an eriviron:uent,
conducive +.o raising the standards of living of people of
the nat.i on.
The construction industry is not. a • t.rade' or a
'service' act.ivity but. a' production activity'. Whatever
the activ1ty the construct2on 1ndust.ry 1s en13aged in the
ul +imate result is ' product' - a building, a bridge, a
teople and so on.
3. U.N. lndustrlaL ilevelop.nent Or,;anisatlon, construct1on lndustry, Honocr<.ph, No.2, U.N.: New 1ork, 1969, ID/!±Of2.
~. i),p, i\:ashjap and '2'·3· Papola. lncome, E:aployment and H.edis+riou+ion: The RoLe of 3UllJ.ine Activity, fishleshan Vol.. lV, i~o.3, 3ep+.e;noer 1973, PP• 173-133.
. ,,
5
There is not a single sect.or of the national
development, where the const.ruction industry does not. play
an important. role. It is estimated that in the 'Sixth
Indian Nat.ional l:'lan' the construct.ion sector accounts :flor
about rupees 48,000 crores, out of t.he t.ot.al plan outlay of
about. rupees 90,000 crores. Out. of this, housing sector
alone accoun+.s for about 25 percent., or rupees 12, 000 crores.
According t.o some est.ima+es, in developing count.ries
90 percent t;oes in new construction and 10 'percent. in the
maintenance and repairs. It. is e stima+ed +.hat 40 percent
goes in housing and connected infrastruct,ure and 20 percent.
in industrial structure and 40 percent. in other civil eJ~:gjl;
neering works.
The 'Indian National :SUildings Organisation'
had ana lysed the components in different sectors-community
development - 50 percent., Thermal energJ- 20 percent, Hydel
energy- 65 percent, Health- 20 percent, Education- 20
percent., and social welfare - 20 percent etc. Thus, the
construction has i+.s cont.ribut.ion in all sectors of national
develop,nent.. It has been calculated that. construction
projects in the 6th plan is likely t.o generate emploJlllent.
to around 15 million man-years or vrill provide jobs on a
cont~nuous oasis to 3 :nlllion persons on a.'l average.
Another iHtportant factor is the role of construc
tion sector in 'exports'. Const.r'lct.ion export.s is one of
the maJor fore~[71 excha.'lge e<J.rners. To the lndian constru
c+~on n:..s to f<;.ce .teen co::Jpe+~t~on fro.:J. overseas constru
ction inaustrJ "'n~ch ~s ;;;.ore productive and :acre effic~ent.
6
The construct.i on sect. or covers vast are as of
operation. It. covers archit.ecture, engineering, design
construction and maintenance and repairs. It. covers Slllall
hut. const.ruction to major engineering structure. lt
incl ud.e s product-ion, supply and transport of all ll:.inds of
building material. It, is mobile, seasonal and more labour
intensive· than ot.her industries.
Thus, as an industry, building is of major
irnpor+ance t.o t.he national econom,y· because of its sensit.l.vity
to and influence on t.he course of business cy.cle, and because
of its relationship to national economic development. As
the product of an indust-ry building is a vital welfare good;
and the concern aoout. the bJil.ilding indust-ry and +he building
market focuses on their failure to provide a s+.andard of
living compatible with the expanding economy, a..>:td lili t.h
growing personal and national income and wealth. The
importance of the buildings in the economy ca..'l be measured
in ter;:.ls of employment., production, inve st.:rtent, or cons=er
ex pendi t.ure s.
3. Em:pl o;{men t in the Bii1l ding IndUJatry
The building industry represents an ii!tportant
bral'lch of the national econo;ny. In ter.ns o.f employnent it.
is one of +he lar,;es+ sl.n,J.e industries l.n India •
.A co::~parabbe picture of occ".lpa+ionsl structure
in the buildine l.ndustrJ l.n J.ndl.a and RaJ.pur cl.ty is presel'J.+ed
7
in Table .1.1. It shows +hat according to the 1981 census,
5 it. employed 29.40 lakhs labourers accounting for 1.)2
percent of the country's t.ot.al labou:r-force.
city p
According to t.hat census, t.h~s ~nuustry in Raipur
6 employed).86 percent laoourers or the city's t.otal
l aoou:r-r· orce.
4. Types of Laoourers in the Buildin_g lnd.us+ry
Tne blilllding construction laoourers are u~v~ded
into three categories, viz., sKilled, semi.,.sll.illed a."ld
unskilled, a.S de.i.'~ned ~n t.he not.irication issueu oy the
govern;nent. una.er the Hinim.um l>fages Act, 1948, as given below:-
I. SKilled Lo.oou:r~ :- Hasons, Painters, Garpent.ers,
Plumbers, Elec+ricians, Hachine Operators, Steel Benders
etc.
II. Semi-Skilled Labourers:- Glaziers, Scaffoldcrs, ,,m+e:r-
sprayers etc • . '
lii. lln§!cilled Labourer·s ;- Helpers/Coolie, Reja e-t.c.
These three ca+egories of laoourers display basic
differences in skill, remuneration and vrork-as::Jigrunent.
5. Census of lndia, 1981, Series I, Part U, Special Report.s 81d Tables based on 5 percent sa.'llple data •
6. Dis .. r~ct Census Boo~, l:laipur 193.;_, Econo.:~ic and St<dis+ical Deparhen+ H&dhya Pradesh.
.~r.
!lo
.
1 •
2.
3.
4.
'5.
TAB
LE
1.1
OC
CU
PA
:rlO
HA
L
DlS
J:R
UB
U'£
10
H
OF
:J:HE
: L
JJ30
UR
F.3.
S ;
EH
l'L
OIH
EN
i IN
:!:
HE
BU
ILD
ING
IN
DU
SfR
Y
I N
ffi t
.. A
ND
R
AI I
U R
·
( In
p
erc
en
tag
e)
Occu
pati
an
al
Cate
go
ries
IND
IJ\.
R.4
.11U
R
CIT
Y
1971
19
81
1971
19
81
----
-C
Ul t
iva+
ors
3
7.8
7
38
.45
3
.83
2
.41
J, g
ri c
ul +
ura
l 3
6.2
0
32
.87
2
.22
2
.47
L
ab
ou
rers
Ho
use
ho
ld
,, 3
.83
3
.89
3
.60
1
. 89
Ind
lils
try
Co
nstr
ucti
on
1.
03
1. 3
2
4.4
2
3.8
6
l·1 a
rgin
al
and
2
1.0
7
23
.47
8
5.9
3
89
.37
o
ther
Hark
ers
To
tal
ltlo
rkcrs
1 o
o. 0
1
00
.0
10
0.0
.1 oo
. 0
(14
53
.90
(
22
24
.70
(.
60
02
1
( 1
· 072
54
l al
chs)
la
lch
s)
l al
chs)
la
kh
s)
-T
ota
l P
op
ul a
t.i o
n
54
71
.30
6
83
8.1
0
1.7
45
18
3
.38
24
5
Lak
hs
Lal
chs
Lak
hs
Lak
hs
So
urc
e
: C
en
sus
of
lnd
ia,
1971
, G
en
era
l E
con
om
ic
Tab
les
Seri
es -
1,
:Part
II;
Cen
sus
of
of
Ind
ia 1
981,
S
eri
es I
, P
ar+
-Il-
Sp
ecia
l R
epo
rt.
and
Tab
les
gase
d
on
5
perc
en
t,
su.a
.:;l
e d
ata
, D
istr
ict
Cen
sus
l:lo
ok,
Rai
J}U
r 19
34,
Eco
no
mic
&
S
tati
sti
cal
Dep
ar+
nen
t.
dad
h;r
a :
Pra
<le
sh,
Lab
ou
r an
d E
mp
loy
men
t,
Raip
ur
1935
. 0;
:1
9
In Raipur city, it. is observed that there is lack
of proper division of labour among +.he building construction
labourers.· t'1ost of +he semi-sk.illed ~rork(·:·;:, are mainly done
by the skilled labou:r·ers. Therefore it becomes_ unnecessary
to make a separate category for semi- skilled vlOrkers.
5. Building Cost.
Building cost. across the size class of capital is
presented in Table 1. 2. It is observed that. t.he percentage
of labour cost is 25.10 percent. which is more than one-fourth
of the t.otal building cost.. It is also observed +-hat across
the size class of capi t.al, +he cost. of ra\~ mate:r·ial s
increases vJith t.he capital size while that of labour cost.
decreases.,
TABLE 1. 2
BUILDING COS:i: J;.CR03S THE> SIZE O:B'A3S OF CAJ?I'l:JIL
Capi tcl Size (i's.Lakh)
Less +han
1 - 5
1
5 and above
Total
Building Cost (in %) -----Labour Ra\{ Hiscellaneous Cost Haterial Cost
Cost.
28.48 63.64 7.88 25.53 65.89 8. 58
24.20 66.67 9.13
25. 10 66.10 8.80
Source • 5<:u.lple ~urvey • •
Tot, a].
100.0
100.0
100,0
100.0
. 10
In t.his section an humble at.tenpt. is made to
present a succinct. revie•J the exist.ing relevant. literatures
on const.ruct.ion labourers.
·The characteristJ.c features of the building
industry have ·been well known,· and yet. no enough quantittat.ive
information is available on them. In India, +.he firs+
attempt. at. collecting basic information on Hages and 111orking ·'·
conditions in the building industry was made by the Labour
Bureau in 1954. The spur for the investigation was provided
by the government's reali7.ation +hat~ it did not have the
necessary data either for planning purposes or to meet. +.he
require;aeuts of its membership in the ILO'S Industrial
Committee on Building, Civil Engineering aXld Public Works. 7
This ~<Tas a hurried survey and coUld do no more than touching
the fringe of the pproblem. Nevertheless, the report.
succeeded in indicating "the general problems concerning
labour in +he Building and Construct.ion Industry and to focus
public attention on some of +he more re pressing needs of
8 the workers.
The Fl. anning C omHli ssi on had re c om.nende d in the
Second };,ive Year Pl.an that +he government. should recula+e
contract system and "secure for contract labourr the
condit.J.ons and protection epJoyed by other wor!\:ers engc:.ged
':/.. Luoour Jureau, V.irll.stry of Luoour and 3·nploy~1ent, Government. of .lndi a, L uo our G onih t J. on s J.n + ne .tllul ding and Const.J."UCtJ.on J.ndu3+ry J.n lndi;;., :08lhJ., Manat;er of I'uolica+ions, 1954, J!• 3.
8. :t.oid, I>• u.
11
by the principal employer, and set up a scheme for decasuali
zat.ion, wherever feasible. 9 Accordingly, t.he Labour Bureau
was entrusted with the task of making a thorough survey of
five maJor indus+ rie s employing· contract. lab our including
the building and const.ruction industr,Y. It produced a
.detailed report. cont.raining a large mass of data and much
useful factual. information. However, there was little by
way of analysis. The Bureau did not even bother t.o s=marize
its findings and draw
this task was left to
appropriat.e conclusions.
10 the users of t.he data.
Apparently,
The second report of the Labour Bureau was followed
by the first significant research effort under+.aken by +he
Shri Ram Centre for Industrial Relat.ions. In a study
focussed on Kota, the newl,Y Industrialif,ing Centre in
Raj stha.n, Vaid and Singh analysed the data collected directly
11 from a sample of 430 'vorkers.
A study on employment relationship in +he building
industry was undertaken at. the ins+ ance of the National
1luildings Organization. 12
This study provides a compre
hensive analysis of +he nature and structure of employment
relationship in +he building industry. The study condludes
9. Labour Bureau, Contract Labour: A Survey of Selected lndustries, 1957-61, Delhi, :1anager of Publications, p.(i).
10 The Com1nit+ee on Labour \~elfare of the Govern:nent of lndia in its report ( 1967) drew heav~ly on La bur 3ureau data. l!'ro;n ~+s report (pp. 407-426) it. seems that the Corrunit+ee hc.d prac+~callJ no other source of info:rnation on +ne indush:J•
11. VCJid, K. tl. and Gu1.·dicl. .>.mt;h, Can+ ract Labour in Construction J.nduntry, A ~+u:iJ ~n RaJasthan, !Jew Delhi, Ghri B.a3 Centre Press, 1966. ·
12. Johrl., c . .;:. a."l.d J.l·:. Ior.dey, ~ploy,;,en+ Relationship in +he 3~ldlr.£: .Lndu::J+rJ, ;.. S+u:iy in Delni, 3hri Ram Centre 7 f"A-r- i n-1•1co+ .. ~; .-.1 "';;e>l ·-+·1 0."0-'"'to ~-'~'~~ -!·1 ~,~."'1 ·..:,pq:-Jl]"'r(~~~ .. ?:c\.1 ~el:li, 19
. 12
that +.he entire structure of employment. relat.ionship in
t.his industry is caught in a social framework of mutually
reJ.nforcing vicJ.ous circles of illiteracy, f.l social backviard-
ness, lack of organir;ation, low wages, small size of firms,
and bacicward technology. .According to the authors there is
cornplet.e absence of dynamic forces wit.hin the industry.
The vast reserves of unemployed and underemployed workers
in the rural areas enable the indust.ry t.o expand and shrink
vrit.l1 fluctuations in demand for its services Without
registering any impet.us for change. The.;yJ, accordingLy,
recoll1lllend a radical departure in public policy through
decasualization of Labour in the hope that it will simult.a:
neously deli:nk the industry from its stat.ic hinterland and
release the process of technologJ.cal and structural. changes.
The employment relation of the building construction
in some urb= centres in +he northern region of India has
already been studied. 13 Such a study is at.+ei'lpted in
Ah:nedabad an urban cent.re of the western region. The study
was conducted' among the vlorll:ers and build~rs on selected
vork sites. It. covers a sample of 1000 labou:r:ers working
in different. 63 construction Hor,c- si +.e s. This study provides
an avervieH of s+~ructural chcrac+eri sties of b\l.l.lding
construc-tion activi +y in .Ahmedabad. The nature of product
13. C.l{. Johri and S.H. Fandey, E:nplO.flnent Relationship in the Buildint; Industry ~ A. Case S+udy in Delhi, Jhri Ram Centre for lndus+rJ.al Rela+J.ons and Human Resources, !lew Delhi, 1972; i,;:. N. V:aid and Grudiul 3J.n[;.:1, Con+r<cc+ Labour J.n Gons+ruc+J.cn lndus+rJ : ;, Cu.se 3+udJ J.n RaJas+11iill, Silri RaJl Cc:n+re for lndus +rial R'"l'-+J..;ns and Bu.n<m Resources, r·;ew .Delni, 1966, "Uso see Kwis+rJ of l.uJoUl' and 3:.:tploy;nent GuverrM.1ent of ... nd::..~, Lo.oour co:1d.J.+J.ons J.n +ne 3:ulding z.nd Cons+ructJ.cn lndus+ rj, .:.>elni, 19o.:...
. 13
market. and technology; the ouilding contractors; size and
capital int.ensit.y, production i'unc+ion, product.ivity and
factor shares and the rolJe of labour subcontractor in t.he
supply of building workers are widely analysed in +his
study. A de+ ail ex ami nation of the vwrke rs' wages, earnings
and conditions of work and an a+ tempt. at port.ra,ying levels
of living of bmlding workers of the ci+y by a de+ailed
analysis of their family size, \·lOrkers, household income
and expendi-ture, povert.y profile and living conditions a:re
also made in this study. The building construction in
Ahilledab ad cit.y is organized around a number of SJnall organi-
sa+.ionally unrelated funct.ionaries brought together t.hrough
a complex contracting sys+em, in which the general builder-
contractor is the key figure. The study finds that 75 percent.
of the households and 73 percent In terms of persons of the
sample are poor- they are living bel ow the urban poverty
line of a percapita expenditure of '\s. 80.34 at 1977-78 prices.
The National C01runission on Labour appointed the
S+.udy Group for the Cons+ ruction Industry in its at.te;npt.
to understand the changes in conditions of Labour in +he
industry since independence. This was one of the series of
s+udy group aas required +o analyse av;ulable information
and project its thinking on labour proolew.s in the Construction
lndustry for the years to co.ne tat;:ing into account. the
14. K-1:. 3ubrah"1anian, .D.n. Veena and Bhanu:::~ati, .:i:. Fa:rikh, Construction Labour i·!a:r;cet ; A 3tctdy In An;;ledabad Concept I'..tbliGiun.:; C=pany, i!ew Delhi, 1932.
14
. 15 possible de vel oplllent. is the ~ndus+ry.
The report concludes that. :
(i) The constr uc+.ion industry is governed by hardly
any regulative or prot.ect.ive legislation.
( ii) The gover:nm.en t is the large st. principal employer
(sponsoring aut.hori+y) in the cons+ruct.ion industry.
(iii)
By devoting some care +.o +he plannine; an.d co-ordi-
nat.ion among different Gover.nmen+s and local
authorities, it vlould be possible to phase the
launching of maJor construct.ion projects in such a
\o~ay·that. a reasonably steady volume of work and level
of employment. are main +.ained.
The un-regulated entry of contractors int.o the
industry regardless of qualifications or resources
has been a major cause of chaotic labour conditions
and much sub-standard and slipshod \vork.
(iv) Different authorities fix different. Minimum 1fages
applicable to -!-he same area or region. Contractors,
hmvever, cannot pay different \o/ages to -!-heir workers
in the sU•Ile region on different projects. This puts
+he con+.ractors to :nuch of inconvenience and loss.
( v) The syste:.1 of \vage pay;,1ent in +he building industry
is +hat +he contractor pays +he sub-contrc.ctors on
p~ece-rates, but +he lu+er pa;j ind~vidual \Wrrl:ers b:f
15. 1<ational Cu::J.UsSl.On on Leioour ltepor+ of +i1e S+·J.dy Gro:.:p for +he C;.ns+ruct . .ion lndu:Jtr:f, Delhi, 1963.
(vi)
(vii)
daily rates. This leads to co:QJ.plaints of non
payment or lower- payment by workers.
15
\~ages in the construc+.ion induRtrJ are mostly fixed
under the Hinimum. \~ages .Act and are l 0\v as cO!llpared
to +hose in orp;ani sed indus+ rie S•
\··larking and liv~ng conditions of the construction
Harkers are appealling. In the absence of specific
legiSlation imprevement.s +herein .cannot be enforced.
(viii) Construction workers are not. strongLy unionised, the
(ix)
cause being +.he casual nature of employment., the
at.t.itude of contractors, the Government. rules
regarding recognition and the lack of determined
organising effort.s by +.he trade union movement i+.self.
Only stronger unions will be able to ensure real
improvement. ln the workers' conditions as in the
Hest.ern countries.
E;mpl ayers in the indus+.ry are also no t. Hell- organised.
Fair conditions for labour as also proper standards
of '\vork '\·Till be possible O..."lly if +ne indus +ry itself
properlY ree;lll a+e s t:1e qualifica+ions and conduct. of
the contractors.
(x) Use of m:1clunes for con3+ruc+lon 1;or:~: is no+. usull.llY
eccno:nlcal ln India 2.tld has w:1 :1dverse effect on
e.aploJ .• wn+. 3u+ labour prouuctlvl+J cD'.ll.d be
in~.;rea:;ed b:J better t1·:U:1inc of s.<.:illcd wor•,;:crs,
bc++er ur._,ar)..i;:;n,+~on or \o!or..r; .;:;reater +ecnnical
16
competence of contractors and sub-cont.rac+ors, and
above Dl.l, better nutrition and living standards of
workers.
. 16 The ICSSR sponsored two s+.u:he s on vomen const.ru-
ction workers, one in Delhi covering nine cons+.ruct.ion sit.es
and one in :Sihar covering +.wo major governnent. projects.
These studies 1vere exploratory and illus+.rati ve rather t.han
exhaus+.ive. The plltrpose \Vas to ascer+.ain the socio-demo-
graphic churact.eris+ics of Homen in this industry, the
systems of recruitlilent, general service condit.~ons, t;)llpe of
wor"ic and wage rates, heal·th, living and \·'elfare facilit.ies
and economic conditions in order + o iden+.ify and assess the
specific nature of their problems. 1·lhile the Delhi st.ddy
covered mainly \vorkers in private cons+.ruct.ion projects, +he
Bihar study concentrated entirely on \-lOrkers in government.
proj e ct.s. Bot.h the reports indicate that. at.+e11p+ s +.o protect
these workers '"hether by lc.w or by official regulations-
generally end in futility be c&use of +he unorgani sed nature
af this labour, their helpless dependence on unscrupulous
interJlediaries 2.11.d the unsicilled na+ure of their work Hhich
'lat~:es the:l easilJ dispensable. A.n impor+.a.>'lt con+r~bution
of these studjes is that tney help to explo1e t:1e myt.h that
wo:aen do not enga;e in occupatl.ons \vhich involve hard and
arduous phy3ical labour.
16. G.P. ~inha. s. !>i. J.lane:.de Ho1en in a Dcvelol)int; Econou1Y -2, Wo.,1en Cono+rac+.Lun \~or.~crs, rt.eports of T1-10 ;)uJ.-veys, IC).)R, Nc\.f Delhi, 1975.
17
A study of unskilled 1 ahour raarket s for civil
construction was proposed by the Transport Research Division
of the Bi:Lnk.wi+hin its o111going major st.u:ly of the Substi-I-.1J.tion
of Labour and Equipment in Civil Construction. 17 Based
essentially on the author's field invesHgation in spring
1975 of some civil cons-truction projects in rural India.
this st.udy represents a first at.temp+. in that direction. I
It. discusses the sources, wages and methods of recruitment
of cons+.ruction labourers, the ex+en+. of female participation
and m.ale-female wage differential. It examines +.he respon-
si vene ss of 1 abour sUP.c1lY t.o wages, t.rie s to identify the
important determinan+.s of cons+.ruction labour supply, and
focusses attention on +.he areas in Hhich f11ture research is
likely +o be productive.
S N Guh · ·. t 18 d f. ld + d f th • J • a ThalCUr a ma· e a ~ e s u y o e
roads and building construction industry of +he Union Terri tory
of Tripura. This study indicates +hat. the period of
involving uneraployment. is not significant. enough to cause
serious anxiety, but tna+, on +he other hax1d, the uncertainty
for the HOrkers ~ s enormous. The co-existence of rel a+i vely
high continuous e,nplo.rment ~nd an air of an~iet.r and uncert.ai-
nty calls for specicl. s+udJ in CJJ.y scheme of decasualisa+ion.
17. S\~adesh R·.Blse, So:ne Aspec+.s of Unru~illed Labour l!a:c-cets for Civil Gcnstruc+~on in india: Ooservations Jased on ?ield lnves+iga~~on, ln+ernaticnaL clan:.c for Reconstruction an;i Develop.aent, 3:.o.JLC 3+<.:.ff ~{or . .;;:in;; Puper Ho. 223, l!.;ve~1ber, 1975.
13. ;>. N. Guha Tha~.:urta. E•lPl "Jf.lent ~n the Cons+rJ.c+ ~on J..ndus+rJ: Does 1+ Ha:le +o Je So Uns+aole? .5pecial ,:.r+1cles, :.:cono:.1~c w1d .i'<-Jl1+~cal. \~ee,tlJ, Vol.-{, No.12, .!arch 21, 19TJ.
18
A paper on +he const.ruction indust.ry was prepared
by +.he Construction lndust.ry Unit. of the \{orid Jank' s
<rransporta+ion Department. in +he year 1984. 19 The primary,
pur pose of this pap er WaS to suggest. directions_ and
emphasise for future actions by the ba."lk to promote the
development. of the domestic const-ruction industry in develop-
ment of t.he domestic cons+ruct.ion industry in developing
countries. The report was heavil.y- based on the Bank's
experience over ten years. It aicns +.o draw the attention
of the widest possible readership t.o +he problems of deve-
lq;>ing +he construction industry as well !'S to the oppor+u-
nit.ies +ha+ exist +o improve +he efficienc.t of this important
sector of +.he economy.
There are fe\v studies about the building industry 20
and labourers. Such type of st·J.dy is also attemp+.ed in
19. A '.tlorld .i3anK Publica1-ion, The Construction Industry ~
20.
Issues and 5+J~ategies in Developing Countr;i.es, The Horld Banlc, 11ashineton, D.c., USA. 1984.
a.
b.
C•
d.
e.
f.
Cassima+is, P.s., Economics of the Cons1-.ruct.ion industry, N.l.C.B., Ne\{ rork, 1969. Coblough, J.R., The Construction lndus+.ry of Great Bri t.ain, London, 1965. Goldenberg, H. C., Construction Labour, Rel at.i ons, Ottawa, 1963. Hay+home, G. v., J?luct.ua+lons in Construction Activity and +heir i.upact. on the EconoJly, Otta~!a, 1971·
Pasvlaalini, R., Career Hobili+J ~n l'tly ; The case of Construction 1-lorE.crs, l'ar.i.s, 1972. John, c. de ihlde and associates, J;. Frai!le>York for tile promotion of Cons1-ruction lndustr~es in the Developing Countries, S+af.f \ior.cin.:; :Paper No.1G3, (\laslungton,o.c., The 1iorld Jank, 1972).
g. fr<:."lsportat.i.on llcPart.J.en+. _; +aff, Tne 3tady of Labour c..nd Cap:).+::l ;}ubs""i+cl+.J.un ~n C.J.vli Bnc.~ineer~n;_; Construt~on, H--G:u.ngton, u.c. : ::,1e :Iorld !3~r..c, Septe:n.ber, 197'3.
19
Communi st Chi~ a~ 1 The author of the study concluded that
houslne; and other social construct.ion lagged considerably
behind the growth of +.he urban population. The Chinese
planners were engrossed with indus+ rial cons+ruct.ion, with
+he r·esul+ that. already low standards of housing, schools.
and hospitals were further impaired. The author also
concluded that +.he general trend of employment in +.he
building constr uc+ion industry sho\ved an impressively
rapid gro1t~th, rising from 400,000 in 1950 to nearly 3 Inillion
in 1958. The majority of men were empl eyed under +he
construction Engineering lHnis+ry and in regional enterprises
under the City Construction Bureau.
The present study on income and employmento of
the 1 abourers in the building industry in RaipuJar city
provides a comprehensive analysis of inco1ae and employment
of 1 ab curers in the bull ding industry of t.:ae city. The study
also provildes the labourers' JOb sa+.isfaction and +heir
productivity in t:O.e buildJ.ng indus+.r.Y··
7. The Problem of study
There are fe1.J studies about +he building const.r.1-
ction labou.cers in lndia. Such studies Here tllade in +he
21. Kang Chao, ':'he ConGtruction Industry ln Go.J.;;!Unist China, Social Science Research Co:mcil, Co:r,:li++ee on +he .Scono:aJ of China. E:i.mburgh Univer3i+.f Press, Edinburgh, 1963.
.20
Kr-Jh 22 23 24
cities like llelhi , Ahemdabad and Raj ast.han. Bum one
has little idea of the J.ncome and employment. pattern of t.he
persons who .are en~:;aged in the const.ruct.ion of buildines
in Raipurcity. Do they get. empl.ilyment. all +he year round or
their employment. is seasonal? 1ffiat. is level of productivity
of labour and capital? How many of them are living below
the urban poverty line and what. measures shoul·d be adopt.ed
to improve their income and employment conditions?
!' Therefore, an attempt has been made t.o find out. the
answers t.o the q_ue stions raised above. Hence there is the
need for the JPresent. study.
8. Objectives of the Study
In the light of various aspect.s of the problems
the main obJectives of the present. study ma.J be stated as
follows:-
( i) To exa-mine the income level of different cat.egorie s
of labourers in the building construction in-dustry
in Raipur city and to estimate the productivi+.y of
labour and capital in the const.ruc·t.ion industry.
22. Johri, e.K. and s.H. Pandey - ''Employment Relationship in Euilding Industry : A Case 3tudy in Delhi, 1972.
23. K.K. SubrDJllanian, D.R. Veena and 3hanunat.i, K. Parikh"construction Labour Harket.", 1982.
24. V<-id, l(.N. end Grudicl Sint;h- "con+ract Labour in Cons"'ruction In:l.us"'rJ: A C<.cse d+udJ in RaJasthan, 1966.
21
(ii) TO find out the nwnber of months und days for which
t.he labou.~::ers get employment in the building const.ru
ct.ion industry.
(iii) !!'O assess the proportion of the total sampled labourers
liv.Lng bel0'\-1 the povert.y line.
9. Reference Year
!llh e reference year of the pre sent study is 1983.
10· The Scope_2£_the St.udy
The study is based on interviews of ~00 labourers,
worlcing in different 8 "building construction work-sites in
Raipur city on the basJbs of pre- structure.d schedules. Direct.
observation of the \Wrk-process at. select.ed work-sites and
informal discussions \vi+h some of the cont.rac+.ors and builders
forms part of the investigation.
The scope of the pre sent study is mainly confined to
the urban area of H.P., Rai::;>ur city in particular. The
survey covers the cons+.ruct.icn of factories, shops, educcr
tional institutions, e;overmaent un.d priv<e.te housing etc.
A seunent of tile construction industry excluded
from +he present study is road construction 2nd repairing
wd .ievelO[JI.lent of land. Tnous.'1 these for,a un i~npor+:;.."lt
22
part. of the const:r:uct.ion industry, i +. was not. found prac+.i
cable t.o cover the labourers engaged in these work-sites
mainly because of +heir t.ransi+ory scattered and mi~:;rat.ory
character.
11. LiJJli + a.t.i ons
(i) Only skilled 2md unsl~illed labourers have been
considered in the present. st.udy. Engineers and
architects are excluded fro;;J. it.. ' '
(ii) l'he present study is confined t.o the urban areas
of Raipulil! city.
(iii) Out of three typical cons+ruct.ion operations, this.
study covers the construction of buiidings· only.
12. Research Hethodolog,y
In this part the methodolobJ of collect.ion of data.
analysis of data and sample design are discussed.
A· Data Recuired :
In view of +he Objec+ives of +he study it. was
necessary to collect +be relevant. data. The foll~ng
data were required :
23
(i) Data about socio-economic characteristics of the
building construction labourers i.e. sex, custe,
ma:H tal st at.us, educational 1 evel, l>lork- st. at.us etc.
(ii) Data regarding the income of different categories of
labOUl'ers working. in the building construction industry.
(iii) Data regarding eJllPloyc'lent and condit,ions of work of'
the building construction labourers.
B. Sample Design
The present. s+udy is mainlY based on the primary
information collected f:rom a sample of 200 labourers and
8 buildin& contractors on +he basis of schedules. It. was
decided to cover a· sample of 200 labourers working in
different. 8 bUJblding construction \.JOrl.;:.-si+es in Raipur city.
The data were collected fro;n +he building construction
labourers on selected work-sites. In the firs+ instance,
informa+ion regarding all building cons+ruct~on worl.;:.-sit.es
in pro6ressiin Raipur city in +he month of Harch-April 1933
was collected. A sa:.1ple of 200 labourers was t.a.ten for the
present. study. A cons+.ruct.ion site was found. to e;nploy on a."l.
average 25 labouL·ers. Applying thi3 average, i+. was expected
+hat a census of labourers in G buildin,; construction worK
sites will cive us +he desired nu:aber ( 200) of lubourers.
24
c. The Collection of Da+.a
The pr·imary data regarding income and employment.
of building construction labou.r~ers were collected by survey
method through personal int.er'Vieiv• Por +his purpose a
s+ruc+ured schedule 1t1as prepared and processed before st.arting
the interviews. The data thus collected are reliable, subject.
to the information supplied by building construction labourers
ivorking in Raipur ci t,y, based on tl1eir remembrance of fact.s.
D. Sample Size
This study covers 200 sampled labourers working
rn the building construction industry in Raipur cit.J. The
sample labourers are so selected that. the ,selection process
gave ec.uiprobability of selection to every •rork-site in the
Raipur ci t.y.
E. Concepts and Definations
The important. concepts and defina+i ons used in
+his study are labour, building, building construction
labour·ers, skilled la.boureJ.•s, unS:;:illed labourers, regular
laoourers, casual labourers, household dependents ivages,
inco:J.e, household inco.ne, employment, workin& days c..nd so
on. These are as follows :-
(i) Labour
J..n:f exertion of bod:f or mrnd under +ha.<{en for +he
s<.!i:e of re~n .. rd or re:mncr<::•ron 18 ter::~ed as la:>our.
25
l!. 'Building' is generally a single :J+.ruc+ure on .. the ground. Some t.ime s i +. is made-up of hro or more campo-
nent unit.s ~<rhich are used or likely to be used as dwellings
(residences) or establishments such as shops, business-
houses, offices, fac+.ories, ~<rarksheds, schools, places of
en+.er+c.inment., places of worship, godOims, stores, etc.
I+ is also possible +hat bu:i.ldings 1tJhich have component units
may be used for a combination of· purposes ·such ·as shop-<..:um-
residence, workshop- cc:Uil-re side nee, office- own.- reside nee etc.
(iii) C onst ruction i~ o.ok
This includes the erection of new buildings,
Lmnobile structures, and public utili+ies- +oge+her wi+.h
service facilities that. becollle integral parts of +.he
buildings and structures and are essential to +heir use for
&n:f general·purpose- and +he res+or+io!'l and altera+.ion of
ex~ s+ing buildings end s+ru.c+ure s. This i mnobile struc+ure s
include dams, reservoirs, ca.Dals, docks, mines, refineries,
highways, airfields, brid6es and railways. Utilities
include ,pmrer +rans.nis.slonand distribution lines, pet.roleu.a
pipelines, >ra+er s·J.pply lines a.'ld scvrel'S• 1ervice facilities
include plur,lbine;, hea+ine; a.'l.d ligh+inc; equip:nen+, s:onita+lon
fixtures, and elev::;,t ors. Cons+ rue+ ion £1 so includes + ne
~ l + f . t + + • .. +. 25 _,e;ao ~ .LOn o exJ.s .l.ng s r•lc+Llres or oos .::.cle3 o.t cons.r\lc ~on,
25. See K.J,J,p., ::ov. 27, 19t>2, :::Ild J .. ~.!!.P. 1953, J?.297.
2H
clearing land, landscaping, and +he placing and for fostering 26 •• .
of perennial plants, It. does not. include any maJor
. " .. . .. " . 27 repaJ.r or ,,unor repax:r of exist.ing building and structures.
Thej are persons employed in construct. ion of
buildings and perf onn various tasd:s in connection ,,_rj_ t.h
masonary, carpent.ry, plumbering, smit.hy, kuliworK etc.
Their labour is performed under the direc+ion of some one
else and they wor:.C for payments in casi1 or in kind or in
both. Thus, all those who 1-10rk in building construction
·sector on \.Jages, \vhe+her in cash or in kind or in bot.h, are
considered as building const.ruc·hon 1 abourers.
( v) Skilleu Labourers --~-_:.
The:r are persons employed in building construction
indus+ry having so:ne skills in occupa+.ions like masonary,
carpen+.ry, pl umber~nc, srti +h.t etc. Their wage rates are
h~:~her as co::tpared to +he unsn:illed labourers. Hasons,
car:pen+ers, pain+ers, elec+ric~ans, plumbers etc are kno~m as
skilLed l aoourers.
---------26. Sec c.II.c.c., 1957, No.5, p.29, ':'his refers only to +:1e
Jlan+s ~>urround~n,; a new buildint::• The gener:ll activity of fox·es+a+ion is tl'ea+cd :J.S accu:.tu1a+.ion for wor;.:i:-tJ c~)itrJ.. 3ec T.C.K. :1:., 1957 1957, ;.;ove.aber 19, p. 18.
27. See C.l!. c. c., '..1.. c . .:\:. ~. ~. H.,
1957, 1956,
iio. 5, :Ia. 1,
29 ·, P• P• 31.
:t.'J.:.C.:.)., p. 4; and
27
(vi) UnS:.cilled Laboure:r-s
Unslcilled lab curers have not any sic ill or training
in their occupations. So, tneir wage rates are i:llways
lower t.hans sicilled labourers. Helpers/:Coolie and rejas are
known as unskilled labourers in t.he building const.ructlon
industry.
Vvii) Regular Labou:r;:~
:Ouilding cons+.ruct.lon labourers w.O.o have been in
cont.inuous employment under solile con+.ract or on so:ne
part.lcular underst.anding durr:ing t.he whole year are considered
as regular laboure rs. The work ill BY be irregular due to
periodical or seasonal variations.
(viii) Casual Labourers
Building cons+.ruct.ion labourers who have not been
in continuous e::tployment. and !HiVe also been \VOrking irregu
larly in +he past seasonally or occasionally are considered
as casual labourers.
( i::;;) Household
l+ includes ill.l persons \..rho are rela+.c.i by blood,
r:w.rTia,::;e, or i.idopt:~.on an.d 'vlilO nor.lally, +a."'e ';leals in +he
sa:ae Ki+chen. Tnc do:J.estlc servn..'1ts, far.;J. L .. bourers n..'1d
unrel >.;.+cd. oo::rders re si-line; \.Jl -t:1 +ne i1ousch<.Jld :.;.re no+
28
counted as members of the household· So, it. const.itut.es
all the residing members but. excludes guests. Ho\,rever,
temporarY absentees are included in it .•
lf. a group of rel-.cted persons do not have t.heir
corr~-:~.on l~:i+chens, each one of +hem \vill const.i+ut.e a separate
household if there is a· separat.e ki+·chen. 1-l hen a group of
unrelated persons live toget . .her, each one of them cons+.it.u+es
a separate household.
(:x;) De~ndents
This category includes all dependent.s such as
infants and children, not attending school or persons
permanently disabled to do any vrorrl: because of illness or
Elld age. I+. incluies even ablebodied persons \vho could no+
be categorised in any other ca+egor.f of non-wor;cer uu+. who
are dependent. on others. B ut. si.lch persons \>lho are d.epend.en+.
on others for subsistence, a.."ld who are se-,king jobs are
ca+gori sed as ' o+:1er non-workers.
(:x;i) llages
Wages l!lean anJ aiJ.ount received for a.."l.f worlc done
or services renderei during the period of +he proJect., This
ma;~ be ~n cash or in lcind or in both.
29
( xii) Income
Income is deemed to comprise of all t.ne earnings
and receipts from any worK, service, landed property,
in+erest etc. lt., hm1ever, does not include capital receipt.s
or gains.
(xiii) Empl o,yment. ; E:.>lpl oyed Pe~:sons
.A..YJ.y person vlho performs some work for a payment.
or profit. on the day of investigation is considered as
'employed.'
(xiv) Local Labour<?rs
Those who coJJL'!lute on foot from their ho;ae in evr;3r:r
workiYJ.g day lived in villages within about. 10 miles from
sites, are considered local labourers.
(X:V) Non-Local Labour§rs
Those 1<1ho come fro;n dti:fferent areas outside the
area of Raipur ci t.y are considered non-l.bcal. They leave
home in late October and~· return llome in late Ha.f or early
J·une. Dur~ng the cons+ruct..Lon 1-10rks, they usually live
close to +he construction sites.
115. lUlalYsi s _of nata
Various statistical tools have been used in this
study to fulfill +he objectives setfour+h in this enquiry.
For the anal:,rsis of primary data collected from field
inve stiga+i on, regard~ne +he building const.r11c+.ion ·labourers'
age, castes, occupations, income, job sat.isfac+.ion etc.
have been \vOrked out by using the si:Ilple mean, percentage,
standard deviation, co-efficient of variation and chi-square
test. in t.hi s study.
The forauJ.a of standard deviation and co-efficient
of variation used in t.his st.ud,y are given belor...r :
( i) S+ andar:i Deviation
s.n.
where
d 2 = Sc,uare of 0eviat.ion from mean
N = Number of ~terns.
hi) Co-efficien-t of Variation
S.D. c.v. :: X 100
a
where
>). :J. = s+ (.;.!1d~rd .l)evie.+ion
a = h.rJ..""h:Ic. ... ~c J.1et:.n.
31
To find out the responden+.s and their fathers' edu-
cat.ional levels and _respondents job sat.isfact.ion, chi-sq_uare
test is worked out. by using the following formula;
whm"!l:'e
x2 :::
fo = fe =
2 X
Chi-square
• 2 ~ ('-·· .. _( _f_o _-_f._e_) -]
fe
Observed ff:'equency
Es+i:na+ed frequency.
Degree of Freedom (d.f.)
d.f. ·= ( r- 1) (c- 1)
where
r = No. of Rows
c = No. of Columns
The Gobb-Douglus production fune+.lon has been used
to find ou+ +he labourer's productivi+.y in the building
industry.
The fomula of Gobb-J)ouglus :Production Function
used in this s+udJ is r;iven below:
2 R •
uhcre
[ = V;..J.uc of ou+ru+ ('.3.)
= Material (value in Rs.)
= Human Labour (value in l's.) = Fixed Capit.al (value in lis.)
= Constant (intercept. term)
32
Elas+.icit.y Coefficients of respective inputs
= Coefficient, of Determination •
• • •
