TRIAL AND ERROR IN PRIVATISATION IN HYDERABAD 105
mentioned. The main reason for those who were working before the introduction of
the unit system to quit their former boss was the expiry of the contract with the MCH.
Although most of these contractors obtained a new contract elsewhere, most labourers
preferred to work in the same or an area nearby for another contractor. Apparently,
labourers are not very attached to their employer. When asked if they would join their
boss if he gets a new contract elsewhere, a majority says that they prefer to stay in the
area were they are currently working.
Both categories of labourers were mainly active as daily labourer (coolie) or as maid-
servant before they entered the solid waste collection sector. The reasons for the MCH
labourers to quit with their former jobs are obvious. They were able to change their
casual, low paying jobs for a permanent and more rewarding one in the public sector.
For the private labourers the reasons are less pertinent. However, half of them referred
to the lower salary of their previous job, while more than a third pointed at the high
irregularity of their former engagements.
Most MCH labourers are recruited through official channels, i.e. via an employment
agency, or on the basis of the well-established rule that a family member of a deceased
worker can take over his/her job. The recruitment channels of the private labourers are
different. Informal networks play a major role here. Very often friends, neighbours or
family members of the labourers have helped, either passively (informing about
vacancies) or actively (recommendation/introduction). It is interesting to note that
most of these relations were themselves not working for the particular contractor. The
rather indiscriminate nature of current recruitment patterns seems to be related to the
fact that the large-scale privatisation efforts in Hyderabad are of recent date. It is quite
possible that social networks will develop further in the future.
Income and labour conditions
It is often said that privatisation leads to a net decrease in employment as a result of
the private sector’s acclaimed higher efficiency. However, in the Hyderabad case the
opposite is true. The total number of people active in solid waste collection has
increased significantly since the introduction of the unit system. Of course, this is
related to the substantial rise in government expenditure on solid waste collection. In
terms of employment the major question in Hyderabad is “how do labour conditions
compare between private contract labourers and their MCH colleagues?” As demon-
strated in the box below a wide gap exists between both types of labourers.