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Labor Regulations and the Firm Size Distribution in Indian Manufacturing

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  • Rana Hasan
  • Karl Robert L. Jandoc

Abstract

We use data from Indian manufacturing to describe the distribution of firm size in terms of employment and discuss implications for public policy, especially labor regulations. A unique feature of our analysis is the use of nationally representative establishment-level data from both the registered (formal) and unregistered (informal) segments of the Indian manufacturing sector. While we find there to be little difference in the size distribution of firms across states believed to have flexible labor regulations versus those with inflexible labor regulations, restricting attention to labor-intensive industries changes the picture dramatically. Here, we find greater prevalence of larger sized firms in states with flexible labor regulations. Moreover, this differential prevalence is higher among firms that commenced production after 1982, when a key aspect of Indian labor regulations was tightened. Overall, our findings are consistent with the argument that labor regulations have affected firm size adversely.

Suggested Citation

  • Rana Hasan & Karl Robert L. Jandoc, 2012. "Labor Regulations and the Firm Size Distribution in Indian Manufacturing," Working Papers 1118, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University, revised Jan 2012.
    • Handle: RePEc:ecq:wpaper:1118
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    11. Gupta, Poonam & Hasan, Rana & Kumar, Utsav, 2009. "Big Reforms but Small Payoffs: Explaining the Weak Record of Growth and Employment in Indian Manufacturing," MPRA Paper 13496, University Library of Munich, Germany.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ayyagari, Meghana & Demirguc-Kunt, Asli & Maksimovic, Vojislav, 2013. "Size and age of establishments: evidence from developing countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6718, The World Bank.
    2. Meghana Ayyagari & Asli Demirguc-Kunt & Vojislav Maksimovic, 2017. "What Determines Entrepreneurial Outcomes in Emerging Markets? The Role of Initial Conditions," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 30(7), pages 2478-2522.
    3. Ayyagari, Meghana & Demirguc-Kunt, Asli & Maksimovic, Vojislav, 2014. "Does local financial development matter for firm lifecycle in India ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7008, The World Bank.
    4. Diti Goswami & Sourabh Bikas Paul, 2020. "Labor Reforms in Rajasthan: A boon or a bane?," Papers 2012.01016, arXiv.org.
    5. K.V. Ramaswamy, 2013. "Size-dependent labour regulations and threshold effects: The Case of contract-worker intensity in Indian manufacturing," Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai Working Papers 2013-012, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai, India.
    6. Srivastava, Ravi., 2016. "Structural change and non-standard forms of employment in India," ILO Working Papers 994897513402676, International Labour Organization.
    7. Borooah, Vani, 2019. "The Labour Market in India," MPRA Paper 101673, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Ravi S. Srivastava, 2016. "Myth and reality of labour flexibility in India," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 59(1), pages 1-38, March.
    9. Isabelle Joumard & Urban Sila & Hermes Morgavi, 2015. "Challenges and Opportunities of India's Manufacturing Sector," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1183, OECD Publishing.
    10. Hasan, Rana & Mehta, Aashish & Sundaram, Asha, 2021. "The effects of labor regulation on firms and exports: Evidence from Indian apparel manufacturing," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 183-200.
    11. Betcherman, Gordon, 2014. "Labor market regulations : what do we know about their impacts in developing countries ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6819, The World Bank.
    12. Das, Satadru & Ghosh, Saurabh & Mazumder, Debojyoti & Tushavera, Jitendra, 2023. "Impact of COVID-19 shock on a segmented labour market: Analysis using a unique panel dataset," MPRA Paper 116780, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Radhicka Kapoor, 2014. "Creating Jobs in India’s Organised Manufacturing Sector," Working Papers id:6208, eSocialSciences.

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    Keywords

    India; Labor regulations; Firm size distribution; manufacturing; employment; public policy;
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