Context:
Infosys founder N.R. Narayana Murthy has stirred debate by encouraging young Indians to work 70 hours per week, drawing comparisons with Japan and Germany’s post-World War II efforts to rebuild. Murthy expressed concern over India’s low worker productivity levels, emphasizing the need for increased work hours to boost the nation’s growth prospects.
Relevance:
GS III: Indian Economy
Dimensions of the Article:
- Worker Productivity and Labour Productivity
- Relationship Between Worker Productivity and Economic Growth
- India’s Worker Productivity and Global Comparisons
Worker Productivity and Labour Productivity
- Productivity measures the output value per unit of labor cost at a micro level.
- At the macro level, it’s assessed as the labor-output ratio or change in Net Domestic Product (NDP) per worker, assuming 8 hours of work per day.
- Worker productivity focuses on mental activities, while labor productivity relates mainly to manual tasks.
Challenges in Measuring Output Value:
- Intellectual labor services make it difficult to independently measure output value.
- Worker income is often used as a proxy for productivity.
- Mr. Murthy’s assertion that additional work with no corresponding pay leads to increased profits at the expense of workers is debated.
Role of Skill, Technology, and Innovation:
- Productivity is not tied to time but skill, encompassing education, training, nutrition, and health.
- Reducing working hours can enhance leisure and quality of life without compromising output value.
- Technological advancements and innovations can increase productivity without extended work hours.
Relationship Between Worker Productivity and Economic Growth
Overall Impact on Economy:
- Increased productivity in any sector can contribute to economic growth by raising the value added and overall accumulation in the economy.
Complex Relationship:
- The link between worker productivity and economic growth is intricate, as it’s influenced by various factors.
Challenges in Measuring Productivity:
- Issues related to measuring nominal output, output prices, labor input, capital stock, and capital stock prices can impact the accuracy of productivity measurements.
Prosperity of Workers:
- The connection between productivity and prosperity, especially for workers, is not straightforward.
- Worker prosperity may not solely depend on hard work or productivity.
- Super-rich individuals’ prosperity can be attributed to factors like inherited wealth (patrimonial capitalism) or high salaries determined by a select group, regardless of actual contributions.
- This disconnect between effort and earnings raises concerns about the fairness of the capitalist system.
India’s Worker Productivity and Global Comparisons
Challenging Productivity Inference:
- Using income as a proxy for productivity can lead to a misleading inference about India’s worker productivity being low.
Income and Productivity Trends:
- Trends in India show decreasing wages and salaries alongside increasing profits since the 1980s.
- Factors contributing to this trend include the rise of informal jobs, changes in labor laws, and rules that may not favor workers.
Hardworking Indian Employees:
- India has a reputation for having some of the hardest working employees globally.
Low Average Wages:
- Despite being hardworking, India ranks among the lowest in terms of average monthly wages on a global scale.
Comparing India to Japan and Germany:
- Drawing comparisons between India’s economy and those of countries like Japan and Germany may not be particularly insightful.
- These countries differ significantly in terms of their workforce, technology, culture, and political systems.
- India’s uniqueness requires avoiding random comparisons that could lead to incorrect conclusions and ineffective policies.
- Instead, the focus should be on investing in society, boosting domestic spending, and prioritizing development that places people’s welfare at the forefront, leading to more favorable and sustainable outcomes.
-Source: The Hindu
