HYDERABAD: General-category workers strengthened their dominance in top-ranking occupations across India’s manufacturing industries over a decade, while SC/ ST workers remained concentrated in lower-ranking jobs, according to a study.
The study, “Assessing Social Diversity Progress in India’s Manufacturing: Quantitative Study Using Diversity Index”, compares employment data from the National Sample Survey Office’s 68th-round survey and the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) to assess caste-based representation gaps among SCs, STs, OBCs and the general category.
Authors Jadhav Chakradhar of the Centre for Economic and Social Studies, Hyderabad, and Arun Kumar Bairwa of the Indian Institute of Management Amritsar found that general-category workers were over-represented in top-ranking occupations in 24 of 32 manufacturing industries in 2011-12, rising to 27 industries (84%) by 2022-23.
Despite average real GDP growth of 5.2%, manufacturing value-added growth of 5.9% and a 13% rise in employment over the decade, occupational inequalities persisted. In the sewerage industry, general-category workers went from being under-represented in leadership roles in 2011-12 to holding 73% more positions than their representation benchmark in 2022-23.
SC workers remained concentrated in lower-ranking jobs, particularly in sewerage, waste collection and remediation. Their average over-representation in the lowest-ranking occupations rose from 9% to 10%, while their aggregate over-representation in top-ranking jobs fell from 115% to 11%. Their average over-representation in top-ranking roles declined from 4% to nearly zero, with their presence largely confined to labour-intensive, lower-wage industries.
ST workers also lost ground in top-ranking occupations. Their aggregate over-representation in these roles fell from 72% to 19%, while their over-representation in the lowest-ranking jobs rose from 154% to 304%. They were more concentrated in lower-ranking jobs than OBC and general-category workers, but less than SC workers.
OBC workers made gains in top-ranking jobs, with aggregate over-representation rising from 52% to 90%. In the lowest-ranking occupations, it fell from 416% to 205%. However, OBC workers remained under-represented in top-ranking positions and were concentrated mainly in middle-ranking jobs.
The researchers said the findings challenge the assumption that economic growth and industrialisation automatically reduce caste-based occupational inequalities. They recommended caste-wise disclosure of workforce representation, diversity benchmarks for senior and high-paying roles, better skills training and career-advancement programmes for SC and ST workers, and reviews of recruitment and promotion practices.
The authors cautioned that the study measures representation gaps but does not establish discrimination as their cause. Data and sample-size limitations also restricted state-level comparisons.
