Collectives help workers come together, organise their needs and demands, and build a voice and force to fight for their rights. YUVA works closely with informal workers, facilitating their training and connecting them to supportive campaigns and networks, to amplify their voice and impact. Learn more about campaigns and collectives we have facilitated.

Legislations at the city, state and national levels in India offer some support and welfare frameworks for informal workers, such as the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, and the Building and Other Construction Workers (BOCW) Act, 1996. Unfortunately, workers are often unaware of these protection frameworks or how to access them.

YUVA helps migrant workers, labour collectives and communities access rights, social protection and welfare. In this way, YUVA also helps state authorities meet their welfare targets too!

National and state schemes and policies, directly and indirectly affecting millions of informal workers, are often implemented imperfectly. YUVA’s work with informal workers enables first-hand access to lived realities, the implications of policies/decisions and gaps in implementation. Our evidence-based ground-up research and constant advocacy efforts help offer strategic inputs for better policy formulations that can uphold the rights of informal workers.

Head to our Publications page to catchup on some recent advocacy reports related to the rights of informal workers.

Over 90 per cent of India’s workforce is employed in the informal sector. In the absence of a regulated environment, individuals employed are often exploited and denied their rights. YUVA’s work with informal workers aims to build public understanding and support for them.

Through city-wide events and campaigns, we mainstream informal labour contributions in building, sustaining and growing urban environments. We invite urban citizenry to build solidarity with the issues faced by informal workers, sharing stories, ideas and evidence-based research to build a new consensus regarding the rights of informal workers and their place in the cityscape, now and in the future.

Head to our Publications page for more insights.