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Waste-Picker Integration

Waste-Picker Livelihood Assessment

Understanding incomes, risks and opportunities to design real support.

Scope this with us →All of Waste-Picker Integration
Assessing how waste-pickers earn across materials and middlemen
What it is

A livelihood assessment analyses how waste-pickers earn — materials, rates, middlemen, seasonality and risks — to design interventions that actually raise and stabilise incomes rather than assume them.

Why it matters
  • Support must be built on how they really earn
  • It exposes exploitative middlemen and rate gaps
  • It sets a baseline to measure income impact
Where the income leaks

See what the picker actually keeps

A livelihood assessment traces material value from source to net income — exposing the middleman margins and rate gaps that decide how much a worker really earns.

Value at sourceWhat the material is worth
After middleman marginsBuyers and aggregators take a cut
After rate & seasonal gapsPrices swing through the year
Net picker incomeWhat the worker keeps
How we do it

A clear, practical approach

01Income mapping

Materials, rates, buyers and seasonality.

02Risk & opportunity

Vulnerabilities and income-upgrade levers.

03Intervention design

Targeted livelihood-improvement plan.

Proof on the ground

Related work we've delivered

Real projects behind our waste-picker integration — named partners, measured outcomes.

Livelihoods

Integrating Waste Pickers at the Baramati MRF

Baramati, Pune district (Population 1,08,152 · ~10 TPD dry waste)

₹8,400 → ₹13,604Waste-picker average monthly income
Read the case study →
Urban SWM

Creating a Garbage-Free Slum in Wadarwadi

Wadarwadi, Shivajinagar ward, Pune

82%Households covered for waste collection (up from ~18%)
Read the case study →
Urban SWM

Evaluation of the Solid Waste Management Project at Dharamshala

Dharamshala (Rakkar), Himachal Pradesh

629th → 86thSwachh Survekshan national rank (2020 → 2022)
Read the case study →
More in Waste-Picker Integration

Related services

Waste-Picker Identification & Survey Counting and knowing the informal workers who already recycle the city. Explore → Waste-Picker Formalisation Bringing informal recyclers into the formal system, with recognition and roles. Explore → Waste-Picker Identity & Social-Security Support Connecting recyclers to the IDs and schemes they are entitled to. Explore → Waste-Picker Cooperative Development Organising individuals into cooperatives with collective bargaining power. Explore → Waste-Picker Training & Capacity Building Skills, safety and financial literacy to move up the value chain. Explore → Waste-Picker MRF Integration Placing waste-pickers at the heart of material recovery facilities. Explore → All of Waste-Picker IntegrationSee the full waste-picker integration service.→
FAQ

Waste-Picker Livelihood Assessment — quick answers

The essentials, then talk to us for your specifics.

Talk to our team →
What is Waste-Picker Livelihood Assessment?
A livelihood assessment analyses how waste-pickers earn — materials, rates, middlemen, seasonality and risks — to design interventions that actually raise and stabilise incomes rather than assume them.
Who needs Waste-Picker Livelihood Assessment?
It's built for CSR & development orgs. Support must be built on how they really earn It exposes exploitative middlemen and rate gaps
How does Social Lab deliver Waste-Picker Livelihood Assessment?
Income mapping: Materials, rates, buyers and seasonality. Risk & opportunity: Vulnerabilities and income-upgrade levers. Intervention design: Targeted livelihood-improvement plan. You get: A livelihood & income analysis; Risk & opportunity mapping; A livelihood-improvement plan.
Where to next

Explore the rest of our waste-circularity work — by service, by who you are, or by where you operate.

All services By client type By location Waste Circularity hub →
Let’s talk

Need waste-picker livelihood assessment?

Tell us where you are and we'll scope it — baseline to measured impact.

Book a consultation

Or call +91 95794 42142 · [email protected]