Australian Journal of Adult Learning - Volume 54 - Issue 3 - November 2014 - Apprenticeships and Equity in India

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine

Paper examining how expanding India’s apprenticeship system can advance equity and social justice. It draws on findings from apprenticeship system research across ten countries and analysis of India’s highly rigid, currently small apprenticeship sector. The study evaluates policy options developed for the Indian government, focusing on implications for social justice and labour-market participation, especially for disadvantaged groups such as low socio-economic communities, rural populations, women, and certain castes.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages21

Reading Time53 min

AccessFree to download

Keywords

Introduction

Background

Australian Journal of Adult Learning Volume 54, Number 3, November 2014 How can the expansion of the apprenticeship system in India create conditions for greater equity and social justice? Erica Smith Federation University Australia Ros Brennan Kemmis Charles Sturt University Paul Comyn International Labour Organization This paper reports on aspects of a recent project carried out for the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank, which was designed to feed into the process of updating and expanding India’s apprenticeship system. The apprenticeship system in India is extremely small for the country’s population, even taking into account the high proportion of jobs that are in the informal economy, and is subject to very rigid regulation. Expansion of the system has been seen as vital in order to improve the supply of skills to the rapidly expanding economy, and also to address issues of disparity in labour market participation and equity for certain groups in Indian society. The paper firstly explains how findings about apprenticeship Can the expansion of the apprenticeships in India create conditions for greater equity and social justice? 369 systems from ten other countries, together with analysis of the Indian situation, were used to present options for consideration by the Indian government. It then analyses these options for their social justice and equity implications. Keywords: Apprenticeship, developing nation, equity, access to training Introduction This paper reports on aspects of a recent project carried out for the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank, which was designed to feed into the process of updating and expanding India’s apprenticeship system. The apprenticeship system in India is extremely small for the country’s population, even taking into account the high proportion of jobs that are in the informal economy, and is subject to very rigid regulation. Expansion of the system has been seen as vital in order to improve the supply of skills to the rapidly expanding economy, and also to address issues of disparity in labour market participation and equity for certain groups in Indian society. However, until recently little firm progress had been made with the expansion of the system. The project used case studies of a number of countries to provide ideas for the Indian system, which were then tested with stakeholders. India is a rapidly developing country with a population of over a billion people. But an important part of Indian economy and society is issues relating to social justice and equity; there are great disparities of income and of opportunity. These matters are of concern in all aspects of Indian public policy but many of the issues are quite intractable. Groups of concern are those from low socio-economic status, those in rural areas, women, and people from certain castes. In this paper we use findings from the project and additional commentary and analysis on the Indian situation to show how improvements to, and expansion of, the apprenticeship system could help to address these problems. The paper is written by the two principal authors of the report, together with a staff member of the ILO who assisted with the final thematic analysis of the project data and has contributed additional data and analysis for this paper. 370 Erica Smith, Ros Brennan Kemmis and Paul Comyn Background India has a population of 1.2 billion and the second largest labour force in the world, at almost half a billion people (Economist, 2011) . For much of the 2000s, India experienced rapid growth, averaging 8 percent or more per annum. However, since the end of 2011, growth has slowed considerably as macroeconomic imbalances continue to generate further risks for the Indian economy. At the same time, outcomes in the labour market have lagged economic trends with a period of‘jobless growth’from 2004-10 only recently overcome by stronger employment creat

FAQs

Why is expanding India’s apprenticeship system considered important?

It is viewed as vital to improve the supply of skills for a rapidly expanding economy and to reduce disparities in labour-market participation and equity for specific groups.

How does the paper develop options for the Indian government?

It uses findings from apprenticeship system experiences in ten other countries, combines them with analysis of the Indian context, and then presents options for consideration.

Which population groups are highlighted as facing major equity and social justice concerns?

The paper points to groups such as people from low socio-economic status, rural areas, women, and people from certain castes.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine