Andhra Pradesh on Monday became the first state to reserve jobs for local youth after the assembly passed the Andhra Pradesh Employment of Local Candidates in Industries/Factories Act, 2019, which reserves 75 per cent jobs in industrial units, factories, joint ventures and projects set up under public-private partnership mode.
According to the new law, if a company does not find the necessary skills in locals, then it will need to train them in association with the state government, the Times of India reported. This way, no company will be able to hide behind the excuse of not finding skilled local labourers.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy had promised to provide quota in local jobs during his ‘padyatra’ in the state. It was also an election promise.
The government had announced 1.33 lakh village volunteer jobs for unemployed youth in the state and the chief minister had said he wanted to implement the quota over the next three years and was confident of convincing industries.
Several states have put forth the idea of reserving jobs for locals, with Madhya Pradesh being the latest. On July 9, chief minister Kamal Nath had said he would bring in a law to reserve 70% jobs for locals, a promise he had made after the Congress came to power in December 2018.
While the step is positive in that it promotes local hiring, the state will also have to focus on skill development of the youth to ensure their employability.