Employment, Technology and Value Chain: A Case of Indian Leather Industry

Abstract

India’s leather industry is an interesting case for a value chain (VC) that has unorganised and organised firms. To understand VC’s upstream, we examine a recent database on unorganised enterprises in the leather industry. First, we assess the determinants of two outcomes: value added and surplus. Second, we gauge if technology impacts employment. We use a multi-database and multi-method approach. Our analysis is based on National Sample Survey’s (NSS) 73rd Round on unincorporated non-agricultural enterprises. To understand the downstream of value-added value chain functions, capacity utilisation, last-mile delivery, product and process innovation, and orientation towards export, we use the World Bank Enterprise survey (2014). While confirming the stylised fact of the direct relationship between the firm’s resources and performance, the study emphasises the pivotal role of human capital in a firm’s performance, valid for both VC streams.