The Hindu Business Line : Key to growth lies in quality of labour: ISED

DISCUSSIONS and debates at various forums of late in Kerala hover around the employment potential of the projects being proposed to be set up in the State.

In a bid to achieve this objective, more recent debates have focused significantly on the role of investments from outside, either through foreign remittances or through FDI. This perception on economic growth has led to a vigorous search for foreign investment and the latest is the proposed `Smart City' project.

According to Dr P.M. Mathew, Director, Institute of Small Enterprises Development (ISED) here, Kerala has often been depicted as a State with substantial investment opportunities. A major reason for such opportunities has been the supply of a large number of educated unemployed, who could be easily absorbed by the new investment projects.

While adequate supplies of labour are a necessary condition, it is not a sufficient condition for investments to take place, he said. While the supply of labour is examined in terms of the relative wage rates, the qualitative aspects of labour are equally important factors, which influence the demand for labour.

"The supply of labour in Kerala is significantly constrained in terms of its quality. On the one hand, the skill sets are not corresponding to the emerging demand. On the other, the willingness to acquire new skills and to perfect the existing skills remain low. Therefore, the State has enough number of wage workers who can do their work strictly according to instructions from above. On the other hand, the number of labour who can conceive and generate ideas and implement them, are only a few in number. This makes Kerala a coolie economy rather than an entrepreneurial economy".

According to Dr Mathew, two major influences by which the Kerala labour market has shaped over the time are: the labour attitude towards work and skills; and cultural practices of labour.

Naturally, the hegemonic labour market behaviour is one where, the majority of the employees are not willing to adjust themselves to the emerging demand. For instance, the majority of the employees are `10 am - 5 pm workers' and least innovative. They speak not in terms of outputs, but in terms of instructions from above, he added.

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