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Informal Labor, Formal Politics, and Dignified Discontent in India

Bibliographic Data

ID23398243
AuthorsRina Agarwala (0000-0002-8631-9295, Johns Hopkins University, corresponding author)
Year2013
Publication date2013-04-08
Open AccessYes
TypeBOOK
VenueInformal Labor, Formal Politics, and Dignified Discontent in India (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherCambridge University Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1017/cbo9781139198738
OpenAlexW4289815526
Open LibraryOL34719147M
ISBN9781139198738
LanguageEN
Citations received172

Since the 1980s, the world's governments have decreased state welfare and thus increased the number of unprotected 'informal' or 'precarious' workers. As a result, more and more workers do not receive secure wages or benefits from either employers or the state. This book offers a fresh and provocative look into the alternative social movements informal workers in India are launching. It also offers a unique analysis of the conditions under which these movements succeed or fail. Drawing from 300 interviews with informal workers, government officials and union leaders, Rina Agarwala argues that Indian informal workers are using their power as voters to demand welfare benefits from the state, rather than demanding traditional work benefits from employers. In addition, they are organizing at the neighborhood level, rather than the shop floor, and appealing to 'citizenship', rather than labor rights.

Citizenship · Economic growth · Economics · Government (linguistics) · Informal sector · Labour economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · State (computer science) · Welfare · Welfare state · Work (physics) · Employment and Welfare Studies · Engineering · Law · India · Informal sector (Economics) · Labor · Labor movement · Labor unions

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Unique citing works172
Citations per year14,33
Citation span2014 - 2026 (13)
Citation velocitycurrent
Highly citedYes
Citation typesNeutral: 156
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