As the 75th anniversary of the Constitution of India — with which LSE alumnus Dr B. R. Ambedkar’s name is indelibly linked — begins, Praharsh Prasoon draws attention to a lesser discussed contribution of Dr Ambedkar —  the empowerment of workers/labourers in colonial India.  

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Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar is most popular for being the architect of the Constitution of India and for his fight for the rights of Dalits. However, his immense contribution to India’s labourers is often overlooked. Apart from caste-based atrocities, a second yet major driving force behind his contribution to India’s freedom struggle and to the framing of a large part of India’s Constitution appears to be his experience with and observations about labourers during British Raj in India.

This struggle started immediately after Ambedkar was awarded his PhDs from the London School of Economics (1923) and Columbia University (1927), returning to India for his job as a teacher (and later Principal) at Government Law College in Bombay. Coming from the Mahar caste which was considered ‘untouchable’, he was denied accommodation and had to move to a tenement house of the Bombay Development Department in Parel. It was home to the lowest earners of the working class, working primarily in the textile industry. His interactions with and observations here perhaps lit the spark that led to his struggle for workers’ rights.

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Ambedkar’s analysis and critique of labour issues emerged from his work on the caste system as well. In a paper titled ‘Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis, and Development‘, Ambedkar said that the caste system was not a ‘division of labour’ but a ‘division of labourers’. Focusing instead on the issues of labourers per se, he struck at the root of atrocities on labourers through the caste system. When he formed the Independent Labour Party (ILP) on 15 August 1936 (once provincial autonomy was declared in 1937 through the Government of India Act 1935), the Communist Party of India (CPI) was enraged because the votes of the workers would now be split. To this, Ambedkar responded by saying that Communists were working for labourers but not Dalit labourers. He wanted to organise his party against the Indian National Congress because he felt that the latter catered to the interests of the rich business class, and he wanted to fill the gap by representing and vehemently fighting for the interests of the landless, poor tenants, agriculturalists, and workers, thus disintegrating the caste and capitalist structures in India. The ILP’s programmes for the elections in 1937 included using surplus charity to fund education, state ownership of industries where necessary, strong labour laws regarding remunerative wages, paid leave, maternity benefits, maximum hours of work, and so on.

In the first poll held under the Government of India Act 1935, the ILP secured a stunning victory by winning 15 out of 17 seats in the Bombay LegislativeAssembly, including 11 of 13 seats reserved for the traditionally oppressed communities. In 1938, the party joined the CPI to organise the Bombay textile mill workers against the Industrial Dispute Bill which curbed strike action by the labourers; the ILP also opposed the Bill in the Bombay Legislative Assembly. In the same year, the ILP (along with the Congress Socialist Party) organised a march of 20,000 tenants from Konkan to Bombay to denounce the khoti system — a revenue collection system by the khots (landlords) who called themselves representatives of the British and usually engaged in exploitative practices such as begar (unpaid labour) —  prevalent in the Konkan region. It was the largest peasant mobilisation in the pre-Independence period.

In addition to working tirelessly for labourers through the ILP, Ambedkar was appointed to the portfolio of labour in the Viceroy’s Executive Council from 1942–46. His ‘Labour Charter‘, presented to the Executive Council in September 1945, became the torchbearer of labour welfare initiatives in India. Viceroys Lord Linlithgow (1936–44) and Lord Wavell (1944–47) witnessed his struggle for labour legislations through the Second World War.

The tripartite approach to employees’ issues was born and grew during Ambedkar’s tenure in the Executive Council, which earlier was discussed by the Labour Department. This approach brought employees, employers and the government on an equal footing to discuss matters of common interest. The Tripartite Indian Labour Conference was held in September 1943 which recommended, after perusing the Adarkar Committee Report, forming a Committee regarding social welfare to figure out how to implement social security measures to India’s labourers. The Committee studied wages, housing, employment, and so on to meet its primary aim. In the 35 reports it submitted, it covered a wide range of industries besides cotton, coal, etc. that were previously remained unaddressed.

While filling in the knowledge gap that had been widening in the British Raj, Ambedkar also worked proactively towards the dignity of labourers. For example, there were two major amendments made to the Indian Mines Act, 1923, thanks to his efforts. One of them, the Indian Mines (Amendment) Ordinance Act, 1945, asked the Government of India to provide crèches for children in mines where women were employed; as a result, the Mines Crèches Rules, 1946, came about. The other notable amendment was about providing separate bathing facilities for men and women, the outcome of which was Coal Mines Pithead Bath Rules, 1946, outlining the construction, standards, etc. for the same. To expedite pithead bath construction, Ambedkar offered government funding covering 10 per cent of the costs and waived the requirement for prior publication of the scheme under Section 31 of the Act. This effort outlined Ambedkar’s concern towards not only workers’ broader welfare but also self-respect and hygiene.

There were several such legislations that Ambedkar strove for in order to ensure that workers’ exploitation was eradicated and their conditions drastically improved. The Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923 saw one amendment, raising eligibility limits and compensation amounts. The Mines Maternity Benefit Act underwent two amendments, significantly enhancing benefits for women workers in mines. The Factories Act, 1934 was amended three times, introducing major changes such as providing paid holidays, reduced working hours, etc. Ambedkar also introduced the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act to define employment terms and reduce disputes. He also advocated for compulsory recognition of trade unions and played a crucial role in Minimum Wages Legislation, ensuring fair wages and workplace rights for workers across industries. He said:

A labourer not only wants equality but he needs liberty also … The Constitution in which equilibrium of the both is established, it is the ideal Constitution for the labourers.

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Through his education, experience and work, Ambedkar demonstrated a deep understanding of the exploitative social and economic system that prevailed at the time and was taking deeper roots in India, showing an unwavering resolve to solve them. He devoted his life to the upliftment of women, Dalits and labourers who had been given the lowest place in society. Let us remember his contributions and strive, by whatever means possible, to nurture equality and liberty in our lives and in the lives of those around us.

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Banner image © Hardik Monga, Coconut Oil factory, Kozhikode, Kerala, 2023, Unsplash.

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