In an era defined by ‘working from home’, the reality of blue-collar work seemed to be invisibilized during the COVID-19 pandemic. In an effort to understand the consequences of this, Good Business Lab (GBL) embarked on its first thought leadership initiative, GBL Access. The series covered issues such as migrant labor, youth employment, and women in the Indian workforce.
We were guided by the question, “But, what about me? I can’t work from home.” The articles, blogs, and engaging interviews with researchers and development experts in Access, all provided an in-depth exploration of the complex challenges confronted by both employers and employees in adapting to the unprecedented changes brought on by the pandemic. It also offered a critical analysis of how labor-intensive industries are rethinking and could potentially redesign work as we know it to prioritize worker wellbeing and business sustainability. Through Access, we aimed to contribute to the ongoing dialogue on creating a more inclusive and equitable future for the labor force in the wake of system-wide disruptions.