Strikes and public policy: Indian evidence

The paper analyses the incidence and duration of strikes during the period 1961 through 1996. Since duration patterns were observed to exhibit persistence over several years, cluster analysis was employed to associate durations with periods in time. Based on these clusters, ordinal response logistic regression models of strike duration were built up. On the other hand, strike incidence was analysed under a linear regression framework. Business cycle, real wages and inflation rate were observed to be prominent factors that affected duration and incidence, while unionisation had minimal impact. The policy implications of these findings have been discussed, within the framework of the liberalisation programme presently underway in India.