LABOUR
LAWS FOR TEXTILE INDUSTRY MAY BE EASED
A relaxation of
labour laws in the garment sector may be on the cards.
Following the dismantling
of the quota regime in textiles, the government is considering
a proposal to allow garment exporters to employ contract labourers
and simplify exit policy.
The proposal has
been piloted jointly by the textiles ministry and the commerce
ministry.
In a representation
to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the two ministries have
sought "flexible labour norms specific to garment manufacturers
largely involved in exports", said a textile ministry
official.
Flexi labour laws
would enable domestic companies to acheive economies and scale
and compete with China, the largest textile exporters.
The two arms of
the government have suggested that the government may even
consider allowing only those export units having bulk orders
to hire contract labourers.
In their representation,
they have also urged state governments to liberalise their
labour policies and arm development commissioners manning
the special ecconomic zones and export-oriented units with
more powers.
Stressing on the
flexible labour laws, the two government arms said that a
conservative labour policy would not help the garment manufacturers
to achieve the economy of scale.
Garment manufacturers
handling large export orders must be allowed to hire extra
contract labourers during the peak season. A change in the
policy is necessary since the Indian industry has to face
intensified competition after scrapping of the export quota.
They also called
for rationalisation of duty structure for the textile industry,
strengthening of infrastructure and fund to build the India
brand, sources said.
While both the
textiles ministry and the commerce department are keen to
push for labour reforms in garment sector, the move is likely
to face stiff opposition from the Left parties.
Therefore, one
of the suggestions was to usher in the liberalisation in a
phased manner, starting with exporters.
The need to reform
labour policies has been emphasised by the textile industry,
citing the success of China in increasing productivity despite
communism.
