Access to regular work or salaried employment meant almost double the wages or more for schedules caste (SC) and other backward classes (OBCs) compared to those engaged in casual work. For scheduled tribes (ST), regular employment almost tripled their wages compared to earnings from casual work, which was the lowest among all social groups. Women casual workers are at the bottom of the wage disparity pyramid, irrespective of social group and location.This was revealed in the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) India Wage Report which looked at wage data from 2004-05 and 2011-12. According to the report, even though wages of all categories of workers had increased, disparities across social groups persisted. It called for strengthening inclusive strategies to provide equal opportunities for access to education, employment and skill development for disadvantaged social groups.Regular SC and OBC workers, both men and women were paid between 2 and 2.4 times more than casual workers in urban areas. But for the STs the difference is even higher, ranging from 2.8 to 3.2 times more for male and female workers. Even among upper castes, transition from casual to regular meant a three-fold increase in income. This could be attributed to the significantly higher average wages for upper castes in regular employment as they have access to better paid jobs than other social groups.STs and SCs have a much lower share of regular workers in comparison to their share in the total workforce, the report added. Between castes, irrespective of gender and location, wage difference is more pronounced in regular work than casual work.In rural and urban areas, men from scheduled tribes in regular employment had higher average wages compared to SCs. “This could be partly due to affirmative action which allowed them to gain entry into low-wage regular employment” stated the report.Wage differentials between social groups clearly show that SCs and STs are well behind upper castes in both rural and urban areas. “The Indian labour market is segregated on the basis of social background, that is, caste. Some disadvantaged groups, like SCs and STs, have been historically marginalized with regard to unequal access to education, employment opportunities, and opportunities to develop skills in certain sectors, thereby widening income inequality” the report observed.