Labour in India

Labour in India refers to employment in the economy of India. In 2020, there were around 476.67 million workers in India, the second largest after China. Out of which, agriculture industry consist of 41.19%, industry sector consist of 26.18% and service sector consist 32.33% of total labour force. Of these over 94 percent work in unincorporated, unorganised enterprises ranging from pushcart vendors to home-based diamond and gem polishing operations. The organised sector includes workers employed by the government, state-owned enterprises and private sector enterprises. In 2008, the organised sector employed 27.5 million workers, of which 17.3 million worked for government or government owned entities.

The Human Rights Measurement Initiative finds that India is only doing 43.9% of what should be possible at its level of income for the right to work. Due to lax labor rules that apply to all businesses in India, laborers are frequently exploited by their bosses in contrast to developed nations. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), Indians have one of the longest average work weeks when compared with the ten largest economies globally. The average working hours in India are approximately 47.7 hours per week. This places India seventh on the list of countries that work the most globally.