MUMBAI -- On a night in early August, as a monsoon roared outside, a group of around 100 small business owners gathered at the banquet hall of a hotel in a Mumbai suburb. Some have been in business for decades, but still employ only a few dozen full-time staff -- the consequence, they said, of strict labor laws and union protections that have hampered their ability to grow.
"Having direct employees means a lot of regulatory requirements," said the owner of a heavy machinery manufacturer, which employs 12 people. "You lose the flexibility to control your costs because of tough restrictions on layoffs."
