5. Labor Conditions on the Shopfloor

Inside the bangles or the “blowing” factories, the working conditions are harsh. In summer, temperatures can rise to more than 60 degrees Celsius near the furnaces. The hot shop workers have to be constantly splashed with water to hold down the heat. Working hours are extensive . Workers all fall into the informal sector of the economy which means that they have no security of employment nor wok-related benefits.

Main de fileur (tarwala). Firozabad, 2021.jpg

A Taarvala shows me his calous and burnt hands in a factory, and says 'if you wanna pircure my work, show this. Such an even happened dozens of times. Photo: A.Kaba, 2021.

Burns and accidents are common. The workers systematically show their callous but also burnt hands to express the hardship of work (mehnat) and the exploitative conditions (shoshan) that they face on an everyday basis. Though child labour seems to have diminished much in the factories, it is still widespread in the household finishing work as well as in the bangles decoration work shops

Contremaître-recruteur (thekedar) surveillant son téléphone et son équipe. Firozabad, 2021.jpg

A thekedar, a foreman-recruiter, watching his phone and overseeing his team at the same time. Though this system of thekedar, the labour force is often not controlled directly by the owners, which dilutes the responsability.

Since the Covid 19, unemployment has grown and dozens of workers are waiting for a job every morning at 5 am, at the industriel zone's entry. These days, they are not often successful.

These casual glassworkers did not find any job this morning. Photo: A. Kaba, 2022

The glass decoration workshops may have less stenuous labour conditions, but the work is no less dangerous: chemical fumes and glittering particules are as toxic as they are shiny.

Decration workshop, the owner's son, in the picture, was insisting on the health hazards caused by these beautiful floating particles. Photo: A. Kaba, 2022.