NCERT Class 11 Economics Employment Growth And Other Issues

EMPLOYMENT : GROWTH, INFORMALISATION AND OTHER ISSUES

7.1 INTRODUCTION

People do a variety of work. Some work on farms, in  factories, banks, shops and many other workplaces; yet a few others work at home. Work at home includes not only traditional work like weaving, lace making or variety of handicrafts but also modern jobs like programming work in the IT industry. Earlier factory work meant working in factories located in cities whereas now technology has enabled people to produce those factory-based goods at home in villages. 

Why do people work? Work plays an important role in our lives as individuals and as members of society.People work for ‘earning’ a living. Som e people get, or have, money by inheriting it, not working for it. This does not completely satisfy anybody. Being employed in work gives us a sense of self-worth and enables us to relate ourselves meaningfully with others. Every working person is activel contributing to national income and hence, the development of the country by engaging in various economic activities — that is the real meaning of ‘earning’ a living. We do not work only for ourselves; we also have a sense of accomplishment when we work to meet the requirements of those who are dependent on us. Having recognised the importance of work, Mahatma Gandhi insisted upon education and training through a variety of works including craft. Studying about working people gives us insights into the quality andnature of employment in our country and helps in understanding and planning our human resources. It helps us to analyse the contribution made by different industries and sectors towards national income. It also helps us to address many social issues such as exploitation of marginalised sections of the society, child labour etc.

7.2 WORKERS AND EMPLOYMENT  

What is employment? Who is a worker? When a farmer works on fields, he or she produces food grains and raw materials for industries. Cotton becomes cloth in textile mills and inpowerlooms. Lorries transport goods from one place to another. We know that the total money value of all such goods and services produced in a country in a year is called its gross domestic product for that year. When we also consider what we pay for our imports and get from our exports we find that there is a net earning for the country which may be positive (if we have exported more in value terms than imported) or negative (if imports exceeded exports in value terms) or zero (if exports and imports were of the same value). When we add this earning (plus or minus) from foreign transactions, what we get is called the country’s gross national product for that year. Those activities which contribute to the gross national product are called economic activities. All those who are engaged in economic activities, in whatever capacity — high or low, are workers. Even if some of them temporarily abstain from work due to  illness, injury or other physicaldisability, bad weather, festivals, social or religious functions, they are also workers. Workers also include all those who help the main workers in these activities. We generally think of only those who are paid by an employer for their work as workers. This is not so. Those who are self-employed are also workers.

EXERCISES

1. Who is a worker?

2. Define worker-population ratio.

3. Are the following workers — a beggar, a thief, a smuggler, a gambler?

4. Find the odd man out (i) owner of a saloon (ii) a cobbler (iii) a cashier in Mother Dairy (iv) a tuition master (v) transport operator (vi) construction worker.

5. The newly emerging jobs are found mostly in the sector (service/manufacturing).

6. An establishement with four hired workers is known as (formal/informal) sector establishment.

7. Raj is going to school. When he is not in school, you will find him working in his farm. Can you consider him as a worker? Why?

8. Compared to urban women, more rural women are found working. Why?

9. Meena is a housewife. Besides taking care of household chores, she works in the cloth shop which is owned and operated by her husband. Can she be considered as a worker? Why?

10. Find the odd man out (i) rickshaw puller who works under a rickshaw owner (ii) mason (iii) mechanic shop worker (iv) shoeshine boy.

11. Why are regular salaried employees more in urban areas than in rural areas?

12. Why are less women found in regular salaried employment?

13. Analyse the recent trends in sectoral distribution of workforce in India.

14. Compared to the 1970s, there has hardly been any change in the distribution of workforce across various industries. Comment.

15. Do you think that in the last 50 years, employment generated in the country is commensurate with the growth of GDP in India? How?

16. Is it necessary to generate employment in the formal sector rather than in the informal sector? Why?

17. Victor is able to get work only for two hours in a day. Rest of the day, he is looking for work. Is he unemployed? Why? What kind of jobs could persons like Victor be doing?

18. You are residing in a village. If you are asked to advice the village panchayat, what kinds of activities would you suggest for the improvement of your village which would also generate employment.

19. Who is a casual wage labourer?

20. How will you know whether a worker is working in the informal sector?

Please refer to attached file for NCERT Class 11 Economics Employment-Growth And Other Issues