Dimensions of wellbeing and recognitional justice of migrant workers during the COVID-19 lockdown in Kerala, India

India’s first national COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020 had severe socio-economic consequences, especially for internal migrant workers who lost jobs, wages, and faced food and housing insecurity. Reports estimated tens of millions affected, with many stranded or walking home, and experiencing deteriorating mental health due to stressors such as unemployment, hunger, poverty, finances, and children’s education. Kerala, a major destination state for inter-state migrants due to higher wages and labour demand, responded relatively quickly and efficiently through participatory governance, strong health infrastructure, early preparation, and targeted welfare measures. Despite substantial commentary on Kerala’s interventions, there is a gap in empirical accounts of migrants’ lived experiences and subjective wellbeing during the lockdown. This study asks how migrant workers in Kerala perceived and experienced their wellbeing—material, relational, and subjective—during the first lockdown, and how they evaluated state, local government, and voluntary interventions. The purpose is to highlight the importance of subjective measures (perceptions of safety, trust, dignity, satisfaction) alongside material indicators to inform disaster preparedness and policy planning through a wellbeing and recognitional justice lens.

The paper reviews scholarship on COVID-19’s impact on India’s predominantly informal economy and internal migrants, documenting widespread job loss, stranded workers, and unequal access to food and services. Kerala is highlighted in prior studies for exemplary migrant welfare during the pandemic, attributed to participatory governance, strong health and social infrastructure, early preparation, communication and psycho-social support, and explicit recognition of migrants as ‘guest workers’. Panchayats played a key role in identifying needs and implementing support. However, the authors identify a gap: few studies centre migrants’ subjective wellbeing and lived experiences of interventions. Theoretical framing draws on White’s (2010) Wellbeing in Developing Countries (WeD) approach—integrating material, relational, and subjective dimensions—and the concept of recognitional justice, which extends social justice to recognition of identities, differential experiences, and institutional inequities. This framework guides evaluation of access to services, relations of love and care, satisfaction with information and services, and recognition of sociocultural identities (e.g., food habits, naming as ‘guest workers’).

Qualitative, people-centred approach prioritising migrants’ socio-psychological perceptions and meanings. Three participant groups: (1) migrant workers based in Kerala during the first lockdown (some later returned home), (2) volunteers involved in relief initiatives, (3) local self-government (panchayat) members. Primary data collection via semi-structured interviews conducted online (Zoom, WhatsApp, telephone) due to travel restrictions; interview duration 1–2 hours. Sample: 10 migrant workers (male; aged 20–40; occupations included painter, salon worker, road construction worker, bike mechanic, daily wage workers), 5 volunteers (2 female, 3 male; aged 20–30; students, PhD scholar, development professionals), and 3 local government members (1 female, 2 male; aged 30–60; ex-members). Convenience and snowball sampling were used. Access to migrant workers was facilitated through Lets Reach Out Kerala (LROK), a National Health Mission project in Ernakulam that provided psycho-social support; LROK call reports were reviewed for issue-based shortlisting and used to substantiate interview data. Data collection occurred in summer 2021 after ethics approval; informed consent obtained; participants anonymised; translation assistance in Hindi and Malayalam followed ethics protocols. The analysis focuses on selected WeD aspects: employment and livelihoods; access to services and amenities; relations of love and care; cultural, political, and social identities; perceptions of safety; trust and confidence, with an emphasis on subjective perceptions across these dimensions.

- Material wellbeing: Lockdown caused immediate loss of employment and income, depleting savings and in some cases triggering reverse remittances to workers in Kerala, increasing family stress. Staying idle induced worry and a sense of lost productivity, though a few perceived it as a rare rest period. Overcrowded shared housing intensified pressure on amenities (water, electricity) and hampered distancing when all residents stayed in simultaneously. - Access to services and amenities: Kerala deployed Community Kitchens, ration kits, and the DISHA psycho-social helpline; yet access was uneven. Some migrants received ration items (e.g., rice, oil, lentils, sugar, vegetables) but many reported receiving kits only once or not at all due to information gaps and repeated follow-up needs. Language-sensitive helplines existed but awareness was limited until volunteers intervened. Food suitability issues emerged: Kerala-style meals (coconut oil) often did not match migrants’ food habits (mustard/vegetable/sunflower oil), leading to declines and public resentment—highlighting cultural mismatches despite inclusive intent. Kerala hosted 69% of India’s government-run relief camps for migrants, evidencing scale of support. - Relations of care and support (relational wellbeing): Strong intra-migrant solidarity; workers expressed concern for co-residents and distant friends, often coordinating support via volunteers. Many employers and some house owners provided accommodation, food, small cash (e.g., Rs. 2000–3000), or paused rent; local shopkeepers extended credit based on trust, especially for long-term residents. However, not all actors helped; some employers/landlords threatened eviction or became unreachable, breaking trust. - Cultural, political, and social identities: Rebranding as ‘guest workers’ (atithi thozhilalikal) elicited mixed migrant reactions. Some saw it as welcoming; many perceived little change without tangible improvements (better pay, conditions). Volunteers and panchayat members viewed the term as more dignified than derogatory labels like ‘Bengali’, indicating a shift in public attitude, yet migrants emphasised action over terminology. - Perceptions of safety and confidence (subjective wellbeing): Economic insecurity from drained savings and job loss caused mental and emotional stress. Many preferred to remain in Kerala rather than take Shramik trains home, trusting faster work resumption and higher wages; a study cited reported only about 4.5 lakh migrants returned while most stayed. Perceived safety derived from multipronged support (government, employers, locals, police). Panchayats’ prior flood-response experience and resident databases aided rapid need assessment and outreach. - Trust and confidence: Trust was built or eroded through concrete actions. Employers who provided help became key safety nets; others who withdrew support undermined trust. Volunteers often earned greater confidence than formal channels due to responsiveness. Shopkeeper credit networks integrated migrants into local trust-based economies. Overall, Kerala fostered confidence in future employment and upward mobility, reinforcing decisions to stay.

Findings show the interdependence of WeD’s material, relational, and subjective dimensions. Material shocks (job and income loss) spilled into subjective distress, while relational supports (employers, landlords, neighbours, shopkeepers, volunteers, police, panchayats) bolstered trust, confidence, and perceived safety. Recognitional justice was visible in Kerala’s efforts (e.g., inclusive relief, language-sensitive helplines, reframing as ‘guest workers’), but gaps persisted in converting recognition into transformative practice: uneven access, information deficits, and cultural insensitivity (e.g., cuisine mismatch) undermined satisfaction and sometimes visibility. Migrants’ ambivalence toward the ‘guest workers’ label underscores that symbolic inclusion must be matched by material improvements and culturally responsive implementation. Subjective evaluations—of satisfaction with services, perceived dignity, trust in helpers—offer crucial feedback for disaster policy: tailoring food to cultural preferences, ensuring continuous, well-communicated aid, leveraging trusted volunteer networks, and formalising responsive practices can improve outcomes. Kerala’s prior disaster experience enabled faster, locally informed responses, suggesting that preparedness infrastructures (databases, relationships) enhance recognitional justice during crises.

The study examined migrant workers’ wellbeing in Kerala during India’s first COVID-19 lockdown through the WeD framework, integrating material, relational, and subjective dimensions. Kerala’s governance and support measures were effective in many respects, yet the analysis highlights the necessity of coupling material aid with attention to relational dynamics and migrants’ subjective perceptions to ensure dignity, satisfaction, and trust. Policy and practice should translate recognition (e.g., ‘guest worker’ framing) into culturally attuned, accessible, and consistently delivered services. Embedding subjective evaluation metrics in disaster planning can strengthen preparedness and responsiveness, helping ensure that inclusive terminology is matched by meaningful reforms that uphold migrants’ wellbeing during crises and beyond.