Haryana is the most recent state to try and implement job reservations for the private sector — but that’s easier said than done

• The Indian state of Haryana recently passed a law mandating that 75% of the jobs in the private sector, which pay up to ₹50,000 per month, should be reserved for locals.
• Andhra Pradesh was the first such state to attempt passing such a law in the face of rising unemployment numbers, but was challenged in the high court for being unconstitutional.
• Karnataka has also passed several provisions, most recently in October 2020, asking the private sector to give preference to local candidates but doesn’t have a mechanism to ensure that companies are compliant.

Haryana’s new reservation law is taking work from home to the next level. The state government is reserving 75% of private sector jobs, which pay up to ₹50,000 per month, for people belonging to the state.

Gurugram, which shares its border with New Delhi, is home to some of the biggest powerhouses in the sector like Google, Microsoft, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, Wipro, HCL Technologies and even Genpact.

“This will impact the business friendly image of the state and be detrimental to Gurugram’s growth trajectory as an IT-BPM hub,” said the IT industry body lobby NASSCOM in a statement.

Haryana is not the first state in India to push for such a move. Others like Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh have already tried to reserve private jobs for locals.

But, all of them have run into hurdles of their own — from whether or not the law is constitutional, to having a mechanism to check whether or not companies are actually compliant.

Here’s a quick look at the states who have tried to reserve jobs for locals in the private sector and the hurdles they’re still facing: