Indian Journal of Industrial Relations: Economics & Social Dev.

Srinath Jagannathan ¹, Kaushik Roy ¹

Affiliations
1 Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, IN

Abstract

Trade unions represent employee collectives' voice to otherwise disaggregated employees to check the arbitrary use of managerial power. In the age of globalisation, where state policy, free movement of capital and the spreading footprints of multinational corporations across the world have intersected to create the zeitgeist of liberalisation and deregulation, Indian trade unions are loosing sympathy from numerous quarters. Though unions at the grassischolar_mains are aligned to larger state and national unions, these alignments appear to be only formal in nature and devoid of the ideological richness that they should normally yield. There appear to be great asymmetries in power as well. Through interviews with seven trade union leaders, the authors were able to discern the expression of alienated connectedness characterised by powerlessness, self estrangement, normlessness, socio-cultural isolation and disenchantment.

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Kaushik Roy ¹

Affiliations
1 (Strategic Management Group), Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Kolkata, IN

Abstract

This paper analyzes the impact of ban on smoking in public places imposed by Government of India on street vendors who sell cigarettes for their livelihood. Semi-structured interviews formed the research instrument and the five vendors interviewed were geographically spread across the town of Anand and the city of Ahmedabad. Results indicate that those retailers who are at the margin face a decline in their sales, coupled with an increased vulnerability to the rent seeking behavior of law enforcing agencies. Criminal activities as an alternative source of livelihood is suggested by vendors in case their source of livelihood is threatened, leading to the conclusion that there are trade-offs in common good associated with legislations.

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