International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research

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Labour Standards, COVID-19 and India’s Export Performance

Author(s) Ms. Sony Agrawal, Prof. Nalin Bharti
Country India
Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted labour markets globally, with particularly adverse effects in economies characterised by intense informality and labour-intensive production frameworks. In India, where more than 90 percent of employment is informal, the crisis led to a substantial deterioration in labour standards, reflected in rising unemployment and informality, especially among women, declining real wages for workers, widening gender differences, significant working-hour losses, and limited social protection benefits. This study examines how the decline in labour standards during the COVID-19 pandemic affected India’s labour-intensive exports during and after the crisis. Using secondary data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), as well as wage databases, the descriptive analysis integrates labour standard indicators with India’s trade performance. The findings show that labour-intensive export sectors such as textiles, apparel, gems and jewellery, leather, handicrafts, and marine products faced acute supply-side constraints due to reverse migration, workforce instability, and low wages, while gendered employment losses constrained the robustness of high-skill service exports. Moreover, labour-intensive exports perform worse than aggregate merchandise exports even after the pandemic recovery, indicating persistent structural vulnerabilities rooted in weakened labour standards. The study demonstrates that labour standards are critical determinants of trade competitiveness and that aligning labour-market reforms with trade policy is necessary for ensuring inclusive, resilient, and sustainable integration of India into global markets.
Keywords Labour Standards; International Trade; Informal Employment; COVID-19; India; Global Value Chains
Field Sociology > Economics
Published In Volume 8, Issue 4, July-August 2026
Published On 2026-07-07
DOI https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i04.83213
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