New labour laws implementation unlikely before 2024 elections

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Under the new labour laws reform agenda, the government had codified 29 Central labour laws into four codes – the Code on Wages 2019, the Code on Social Security 2020, the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code 2020, and the Industrial Relations Code 2020.
New labour laws

New labour laws Implementation unlikely before 2024 elections.

 

The government has decided to hold back the implementation of labour law reforms across the country until after the 2024 general elections.

 

A section of the industry hoped that the government would try to notify the laws with effect from April 1 this year, despite indications that they would further delay as early implementation of the four labour codes passed by Parliament as September 2020.

 

The Ministry of Labour and Employment held a series of talks with stakeholders, including industry representatives and union leaders, late last year to reach consensus on the implementation date, but those efforts were unsuccessful. “The talks are now at a standstill,” according to the sources.

 

Despite the hindrance of state governments in declaring the regulations, which is delaying the codes’ implementation, the labour market has already become more flexible as many states have taken measures to ease the standards.

 

Companies in labour-intensive industries such as textiles and clothing are now also turning to fixed-term employment contracts as a legitimate option.

 

The new labour laws : the existing laws subsumed in the four new codes?

New Labour CodesCentral Laws Summed in
Code on Wages, 2019
  • The Payment of Wages Act, 1936;
  • The Minimum Wages Act, 1948; 
  • The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965; and 
  • The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976
Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020
  • The Factories Act, 1948
  • The Contract Labor (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970
  • The Mines Act, 1952
  • The Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Act, 1986
  • The Building & Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996
  • The Plantations Labor Act, 1951
  • The Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979
  • The Working Journalist and other News Paper Employees (Conditions of Service and Miscellaneous Provision) Act, 1955
  • The Working Journalist (Fixation of rates of wages) Act, 1958
  • The Cine Workers and Cinema Theatre Workers Act, 1981
  • The Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961
  • The Sales Promotion Employees (Conditions of Service) Act, 1976
  • The Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966
Industrial Relations Code, 2020
  • The Trade Unions Act, 1926; 
  • The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946, and 
  • The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947
Code on Social Security, 2020
  • The Employee’s Compensation Act, 1923
  • The Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948
  • The Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952
  • The Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959
  • The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961
  • The Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972
  • The Cine-Workers Welfare Fund Act, 1981
  • The Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act, 1996
  • The Unorganized Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008

 

The new labour laws : the draft rules released by Centre government in 2020

Code on Wages, 2019

  1. Codes on Wages (Central) Rules
  2. Code on Wages (Central Advisory Board) Rules

Industrial Relation Code, 2020

  1. Industrial Relation (Central) Rules
  2. Recognition of Negotiating Union or Negotiating Council and Adjudication of Disputes of Trade Unions (Central) Rules
  3. Draft Model Standing Order for Service Sector
  4. Draft Model Standing Order for Manufacturing Sector & Mining Sector

Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020

  1. The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules
  2. Rules for Constitution of Technical Committees under Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code

Code on Social Security, 2020

  1. The Code on Social Security (Central) Rules
  2. The Code on Social Security (Employee’s Compensation) (Central) Rules
News Bureau PM

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