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Ragpickers indirectly contribute to a clean society by playing a crucial role in waste recycling. Like other occupations, the work of waste collection also involves a lot of occupational hazards. Do the Ragpickers get compensated for experiencing occupational hazards? The study provides an answer to this question. A primary survey of 133 Ragpickers was conducted in Chennai city. With the help of the Hedonic Wage Equation (HWE) under the Revealed Preference (RP) approach, a relationship was established between the wages of the Ragpickers and their occupational hazards. Based on this relationship, the study has found out that the wages received by the Ragpickers compensate them for experiencing occupational hazards in their work environment. The Wage Premium (WP) for non-fatal occupational hazards was greater than that for fatal occupational hazards. In addition to that, the study succeeded in calculating the amount the Ragpickers are willing to pay to get a reduction in fatal occupational hazard. This was done by estimating the Value of Statistical Life (VSL), which amounted to INR 87.79 million. Moreover, the Value of Statistical Injury (VSI) was also computed for four major non-fatal occupational hazards. VSL and VSI are greatly helpful in framing health and safety policies concerning the labor market. More research works dealing with WP, VSL, and VSI are required, especially focusing on unorganized workers like Ragpickers.
Keywords: Ragpickers, Occupational hazards, HWE, Compensating Wage Differential (CWD), Willingness to Pay (WTP), Willingness to Accept (WTA), VSL and VSI.
