75T HANNIVERSARY SPECIAL 2024 DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION AND ITS IMPACT ON THE HIRE TO RETIRE PROCESS IN INDIAN INDUSTRIES GENDER DIVERSITY AND INCLUSIVITY AT SHOP FLOOR LEVEL
one of the two HRM academic committees at XLRI, is proud to present the sixteenth volume of its annual IR magazine - DHYUTI. This magazine reflects a culmination of dedicated efforts and rigorous research by the members. Through exhaustive analysis of the dynamic landscape of Industrial Relations (IR), our committee has curated a collection of insightful articles, shedding light on the multifaceted dimensions of IR developments, policies, and government schemes. Crafted with precision and depth, DHYUTI aspires to broaden and enrich the reader’s perspective on contemporary issues in the realm of HRM, fostering a deeper understanding of the complexities inherent in this domain. With a commitment to excellence, this edition endeavors to serve as a beacon, guiding readers through the intricate interplay of factors shaping the ever-evolving sphere of Industrial Relations.
As we present the 16th edition of DHYUTI, we are thrilled to bring to you the insights and expertise of distinguished professionals from the field of Industrial Relations. A special thank you to Professor Soumendra Bagchi for his enlightening article, “The Shift From Organizational Loyalty To Professional Loyalty As A Way To Ensure Lifelong Employability”. His work offers valuable perspectives on career development and loyalty in the modern workplace. We are also immensely grateful to Dr. Tina Stephen for her role in the Platinum Jubilee 7th XL-IR Summit 2023. We thank and value her continued support and mentorship to us. Our thanks also go to Professor Shameem S and Tanmaya Pattnayak Sir for their essential contributions to the Platinum Jubilee 7th XL-IR Summit 2023. Their insights and participation greatly enriched the events. The knowledge and experience shared by these esteemed professionals not only enhance this edition of DHYUTI but also contribute significantly to the field of Industrial Relations. We are deeply appreciative of their contributions. Thank you for your unwavering support and for helping us advance the conversation in Industrial Relations. Warm Regards, The Editorial Team
FROM THE DIARY OF THE FACULTY COORDINATOR.....P6 -Dr Tina Stephen A MESSAGE FROM THE SECRETARY, FIRE@X.....P7 -Akriti Singh Chauhan THE SHIFT FROM ORGANIZATIONAL LOYALTY TO PROFESSIONAL LOYALTY AS A WAY TO ENSURE LIFELONG EMPLOYABILITY.....P8 -Dr S N Bagchi GENDER DIVERSITY AND INCLUSIVITY AT SHOP FLOOR LEVEL.....P10 -Abhiram Pavithran O CROSSWORD BRAINSTORM.....P12 NAVIGATING THE NEW TERRAIN: THE IR CODE 2020 AND ITS IMPACT ON INDIAN LABOUR.....P13 -Riya Maria
THE RIDDLER.....P15 SHAPING INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS IN THE DIGITAL AGE.....P16 -Rohan Shah SYMPHONY OF TRANSFORMATION: DECODING THE DIGITAL RHAPSODY IN INDIA'S WORKFORCE EVOLUTION.....P18 -Ayush Ranjan TALENT ACQUISITION & RECRUITMENT TRENDS IN IT INDUSTRY.....P20 -Aayushi Jain & Arjun Khanna THE ROLE OF HR IN FOSTERING A CULTURE OF INCLUSION, COLLABORATION AND INNOVATION ACROSS BORDERS.....P22 -Riddhi Sharma DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION AND ITS IMPACT ON THE "HIRE TO RETIRE" PROCESS IN INDIAN INDUSTRIES.....P24 -Shivam Gupta EXCERPTS FROM THE PANEL DISCUSSION.....P27
FACULTY COORDINATOR DHYUTI, the Annual industrial relations journal of FIRE@X, has donned the mantle of being one of the best Industrial Relations journals in the country, discussing the most relevant issues pertaining to industrial relations. This year the magazine covers issues such as ambivalence in the regulatory regime. The delay in Labour code implementation has created confusion in the market. The industry is grappling with changes that need to be introduced, ranging from the Dr. Tina K Stephen deployment of new IR Code to digital Professor, transformation by employees, etc. Human Resource Employees have seen an erosion of many Management, rights previously considered sacrosanct, XLRI Jamshedpur including, the right to strike. Many labour laws which were previously circumscribed by its applicability will be applicable to a broader spectrum of employees as and when these Codes get implemented. There is pushback from the industry and trade unions about many of these changes, and this year's issue will explore a few of these challenges. The industry is also accepting certain lessons and practices learned during the pandemic. The journal this year also focuses on postpandemic issues along with general issues, including those related to precarious employment. Slowing down of the world economy is going to further affect industrial relations. The IT sector has shown early signs of this by announcing massive layoffs. Industrial relations should brace for the impact of such a slowdown. Thus, this year's issue focuses on these multifarious challenges faced by the industry.
SECRETARY Dear readers, The FIRE@X team is delighted to launch DHYUTI, the yearly industrial relations magazine. In all that it does, FIRE@X seeks to enrich the lives of its most important stakeholders—the students—in order to go above and beyond expectations. This edition of Dhyuti aims to provide a broad overview of the fast Akriti Singh Chauhan, evolving IR landscape by delving into issues like Gender Inclusivity, the new IR HRM 2024, XLRI Jamshedpur Code and Digital Transformation. This year, FIRE@X has made a number of attempts to improve the students' industry interface. We organised the seventh XL-IR Summit in November 2023 with the goal of giving students chances to acquire insightful knowledge about the sector outside of the classroom. The three-day symposium is the culmination of six offline and online events. In order to get new insights into the more general issue we chose this year, we also held a panel discussion on "Hire To Retire" with prominent figures from the industry from other organisations. Any success that FlRE@X has achieved is a result of the support it has received as well as the enduring efforts of its members throughout the years. In light of this, I would like to sincerely thank Prof. Tina Stephen, our faculty coordinator, and the XLRI faculty members teaching IR and labour law, notably Profs. Pranabesh Ray, P.K. Padhi, and Santanu Sarkar, for their unwavering support and encouragement throughout this process.
The Shift From Organizational Loyalty To Professional Loyalty As A Way To Ensure Lifelong Employability The widely discussed digital revolution has indeed transformed various facets of our world (e.g., Acemoglu & Restrepo, 2018; Furman & Seamans, 2019; Webster, & Ivanov, 2020). Amidst this technological upheaval, the traditional classification of industries into primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors continue to offer a valuable framework for comprehending the implications of technological change. In the era of large-language models like ChatGPT, the impact appears less likely to significantly disrupt the primary and secondary sectors, given the substantial industrialization and mechanization witnessed globally. In the primary sector, encompassing activities such as agriculture and mining, the impact of the digital revolution seems limited. Industrialized regions have already undergone extensive mechanization, while in other parts of the world, the lower marginal cost of manual labor remains a driving force. Similarly, the secondary sector, focused on processing and manufacturing, may experience incremental changes but is not poised for radical disruption. The genuine locus of transformation lies in the tertiary sector, particularly in its advanced version—the knowledge sector. Developed economies exhibit a shift from agrarian and industrial pursuits toward service-oriented activities, with the ongoing digital revolution playing a pivotal role in reshaping how knowledge and services are produced and consumed. As this shift unfolds, questions arise about the fate of employees in this evolving economic landscape. The lens of Malthusian economics provides a thought-provoking perspective, anticipating challenges associated with population aging rather than explosive growth. Navigating this intersection of demographic shifts and technological advancements brings the status and role of employees into focus. The concept of employment, and industrial relations by extension, takes on new dimensions. How will societies adapt to an older workforce within a digital revolution transforming the nature of work? Addressing these questions requires a nuanced exploration of employment dynamics, understanding how technological advancements in the knowledge sector can enhance productivity and create meaningful opportunities or reduction in employment opportunities (Howard, 2019). Furthermore, it necessitates a reevaluation of traditional models of industrial relations to accommodate the evolving nature of work, the gig economy, and the growing importance of digital skills. The evolving nature of work, accentuated by the digital revolution and the emergence of the gig economy, demands a profound reevaluation of traditional models of industrial relations. The once-stable employer-employee relationship is evolving into a more dynamic and flexible landscape, challenging established notions of job security, benefits, and the social safety net. In this transformed paradigm, the growing importance of flexible skillsets, with an emphasis on digital skills, takes center stage as technology becomes increasingly embedded in various industries, leading to a surge in demand for workers with advanced digital competencies. The reevaluation of industrial relations must prioritize cultivating digital skills and offer mechanisms for upskilling and reskilling the workforce. Traditional structures of training and education may need restructuring to keep DHYUTI 2024
pace with the rapid evolution of technology. The hireto-retire paradigm, already weakened with the outsourcing boom, might see a complete shift to decentralized working, incorporating independent contractors, each with their own teams, supporting larger organizations. Employee loyalty has already shifted from organizations to loyalty towards professions, implying a large focus on keeping oneself market-ready, with significant investments on selftraining and development. Simple and repetitive tasks will continue to be outsourced, this time to AI-tools which can deliver them more efficiently and with less errors (Parry and Battista, 2023). This poses a significant challenge for HR professionals, as industries move away from Fordist – style manufacturing, and employees reduce in number in organizations. Who would HR then actually cater to? As IT industries and non-IT industries converge (Reshi, 2023) and employees get replaced by digital nomads, in the service and knowledge-based industries (Sánchez-Vergara et al., 2023), the boundaries between workplace and home get blurred, and maybe develop into a complex ecosystem with its own political economy (Šmite et al., 2023). Successfully navigating this changing landscape requires collaboration among policymakers, businesses, and labor organizations to design new frameworks balancing the flexibility required in the gig economy with the protection and rights traditionally associated with stable employment. Questions regarding what constitutes decent and meaningful work and the question of income (Nilsson, 1984) will dominate the policy discussions (Blustein et al., 2023). Proactive measures such as portable benefits, continuous learning programs, and innovative social safety nets contribute to a more inclusive and resilient employment ecosystem. The reevaluation of industrial relations is not just an acknowledgment of change but a strategic imperative to foster a workforce equipped to thrive in the digital era. In conclusion, while the digital revolution may not dramatically alter the landscape of primary and secondary sectors, its impact on the tertiary sector and the knowledge economy is profound. This transformative phase gives rise to pivotal questions regarding the future landscape of employment, the evolving role of an aging workforce, and the imperative for innovative approaches to industrial relations. As technology reshapes industries and job roles, understanding and addressing these challenges necessitate a comprehensive perspective that encompasses both the ongoing technological trends and the significant demographic shifts taking place. Firstly, the future of employment is under scrutiny as traditional job structures are disrupted by technological advancements. The impact on job creation, job security, and the nature of employment relationships is crucial to understand. Automation and artificial intelligence are altering the skills required for the workforce, making it essential to consider how individuals can adapt and acquire the necessary competencies to thrive in this evolving job market. Secondly, the role of an aging workforce introduces unique considerations. Demographic shifts indicate an increasingly older population in major economies. This raises questions about how societies and businesses will adapt to an aging workforce, considering aspects such as healthcare, retirement, and the potential need for lifelong learning opportunities. Balancing the experience and knowledge of older workers with the demand for new skills in the digital era becomes a key challenge. Lastly, innovative approaches to industrial relations are imperative for navigating this changing landscape successfully. Traditional models may not adequately address the dynamic and flexible nature of contemporary work arrangements, such as those found in the gig economy. New frameworks must be designed to ensure fair treatment, protection, and rights for workers in this evolving employment ecosystem. Collaborative efforts between policymakers, businesses, and labor organizations are essential to strike a balance between the flexibility demanded by the gig economy and the security associated with traditional employment. For a society, tackling the challenges posed by the intersection of technological trends and demographic shifts requires a holistic understanding. This understanding forms the foundation for crafting innovative solutions that can pave the way for a reimagined world of work and employment (e.g., Furman & Seamans, 2019). It involves rethinking traditional employment structures, adapting to the changing needs of an aging workforce, and fostering collaborative approaches to industrial relations that align with the dynamics of the digital era. Embracing these changes can lead to a more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable future for work and employment. For an individual, the writing on the wall is clear – the need to ensure employability may be more due to constant upgradation of skills and developing capabilities that are in sync with the evolving technological frontier rather than relying on traditional collective bargaining or government policies. S N Bagchi Professor, XLRI Jamshedpur Fellowship (IIM Ahmedabad) DHYUTI 2024
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