Publication: Are Labor Regulations Driving Computer Usage in India's Retail Stores?
Abstract
A commonly held but untested view is that the use of modern technology such as computers could be endogenous to labor regulations. This paper confirms this view using the Enterprise survey's data on 1948 retail stores in India.
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Publication Computer Usage and Labour Regulation in India's Retail Sector(2010)A recent survey of 1,948 retail stores in India conducted by the World Bank's Enterprise surveys shows that 19 per cent of all stores use computers. In the state of Kerala, the figure is as high as 40 per cent. Using this survey, we estimate the effect of computer usage on labour employment. Our findings show that this effect depends on the stringency of the underlying labour laws. Stricter labour laws magnify the labour displacing effect of computers significantly.Publication Labor Regulation and Employment in India's Retail Stores(2009)A new dataset of 1,948 retail stores in India shows that 27% of the stores find labor regulations as a problem for their business. Using these data, we analyze the effect of labor regulations on employment at the store level. We find that flexible labor regulations have a strong positive effect on job creation. Our estimates show that labor reforms are likely to increase employment by 22% of the current level for an average store. We also address the issue of informality in India's retail sector. Our findings suggest that more flexible labor laws can encourage firms to operate in the more efficient formal retail sector. According to our estimates, labor reforms could reduce the level of informality by as much as 33%.Publication Are Labor Regulations Driving Computer Usage in India's Retail Stores?(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2007-07)A recent survey of 1,948 retail stores in India conducted by the World Bank's Enterprise Surveys shows that 19 percent of the stores use computers for their business. In some states like Kerala, computer use is as high as 40 percent. Using this data the author finds labor regulation as an important determinant of computer use. His estimates suggest that when faced with burdensome labor regulations, the probability of using a computer rises by over 36 percentage points for an average store. These findings formally confirm a commonly held but untested view that labor regulation may be responsible for the spread of labor saving modern technology.Publication Labor Regulation and Employment in India's Retail Stores(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2007-08)A new dataset of 1,948 retail stores in India compiled by the World Bank's Enterprise Surveys shows that 27 percent of the stores report labor regulations as a problem for their business. Using these data we analyze the effect of labor regulation on employment at the store level. We find that stricter labor regulation has a strong negative effect on employment. Our estimates show that labor reforms are likely to increase employment by 22 percent of the current level for an average store.Publication Leveraging ICT for Growth and Competition in Bangladesh(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009)The objective of this study is to assist Bangladesh in becoming a viable player in the IT/ITES industry in five years by identifying the strategies, programs and investments needed in order for the country to leverage ICT for economic growth and competitiveness, as well as for social development by increasing gender equality and youth employment. Why is it important for Bangladesh to concentrate its efforts in developing the IT/ITES industry? First of all, industry development is aligned with many of the goals for Digital Bangladesh as described in the manifesto, including development of software exports, IT parks, youth employment, etc. Secondly, the global IT/ITES is too large to be ignored - leaving a significant untapped market for which many countries are competing. Beyond direct economic benefits, IT/ITES growth can generate large-scale employment. India and the Philippines are established competitors while China, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are emerging as new threats. To-date, the IT/ITES industry development activities in Bangladesh, while not without its successes, generally lacks widely accepted, centralized leadership or focus. This must change if Bangladesh is going to mount serious competition for an increase in market share.
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