TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
In a vast country like India, labour force is one of the pivotal pillars of economy and socio-economic environment and is considered as major engine of economic growth.
Employment in India has shown remarkable growth- rising from 47.5 crore in 2017–18 to 64.33 crore in2023–24, a net addition of 16.83 crore jobs in just six years. During the same period, the unemployment rate declined sharply from 6.0% to 3.2%, and 1.56 crore women entered the formal workforce.
Genesis
Many of India’s labour laws were framed in the pre-Independence and early post-Independence era (1930s–1950s), at a time when the economy and world of work were fundamentally different. While most major economies have updated and consolidated their labour regulations in recent decades, India continued to operate under fragmented, complex and in several parts outdated provisions spread across 29 Central labour laws. These restrictive frameworks struggled to keep pace with changing economic realities and evolving forms of employment, creating uncertainty and increasing compliance burden for both workers and industry.
The second National Commission on Labour had recommended that the existing Labour Laws should be broadly grouped into four/ five Labour Codes on functional basis. Accordingly, the Ministry of Labour & Employment started the exercise to rationalize, simplify and amalgamate the relevant provisions of the labour laws in four codes. The four Labour Codes were enacted after the deliberations held in the tripartite meeting of the Government, employers’, industry representatives and various trade unions during 2015 to 2019. The Code on Wages, 2019 was notified on 8th August, 2019 and the other three Codes were notified on 29th September, 2020.
In order to simplify and strengthen the framework governing workers’ rights, the Government has consolidated 29 labour laws into four comprehensive Labour Codes.
Erstwhile Labour Laws
The following erstwhile labour laws have been consolidated into the four new Labour Codes:
- Payment of Wages Act, 1936
- Minimum Wages Act, 1948
- Payment of Bonus Act, 1965
- Equal Remuneration Act, 1976
- Employee’s Compensation Act, 1923
- Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948
- Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952
- Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959
- Maternity Benefit Act, 1961
- Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972
- Cine-Workers Welfare Fund Act, 1981
- Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act, 1996
- Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008
- Factories Act, 1948
- Plantations Labour Act, 1951
- Mines Act, 1952
- Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955
- Working Journalists (Fixation of Rates of Wages) Act, 1958
- Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961
- Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966
- Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970
- Sales Promotion Employees (Conditions of Service) Act, 1976
- Inter-state Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979
- Cine-Workers and Cinema Theatre Workers (Regulation of Employment) Act, 1981
- Dock Workers Safety (Safety, Health, and Welfare) Act, 1986
- Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1966
- Industrial Disputes Act, 1947
- Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946
- Trade Unions Act, 1926
New Labour Codes
The new Codes, viz, the Code on Wages, 2019, the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, the Code on Social Security, 2020 and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 are being made effective from 21st November 2025.
Key highlights of new Codes can be summed up as under:
Code of Wages 2019
Universal Minimum Wages: The Code establishes a statutory right to minimum wages for all employees across both organized and unorganized sectors. Earlier, the Minimum Wages Act applied only to scheduled employments covering ~30% of workers.
Introduction of Floor Wage: A statutory floor wage shall be set by the Government based on minimum living standards, with scope for regional variation. No state can fix minimum wages below this level, ensuring uniformity and adequacy nationwide.
Criteria for Wage Fixation: Appropriate Governments will determine minimum wages considering workers’ skill levels (unskilled, skilled, semi-skilled and highly skilled), geographic areas, and job conditions such as temperature, humidity, or hazardous environments.
Gender Equality in Employment: Employers shall not discriminate on the basis of gender, including transgender identity, in recruitment, wages, and employment conditions for similar work.
Universal Coverage for Wage Payment: Provisions ensuring timely payment and preventing un-authorized deductions will apply to all employees, irrespective of wage limits (currently applicable only to employees earningup to Rs. 24,000/month).
Overtime Compensation: Employers must pay all employees overtime wages at least twice the normal rate for any work done beyond the regular working hours.
Responsibility for Wage Payment: Employers, including companies, firms, or associations, shall pay wages to employees employed by them. Failure to do so makes the proprietor/ entity liable for unpaid wages.
Inspector-cum-Facilitator: The traditional role of “Inspector” is replaced with “Inspector-cum-Facilitator,” emphasizing guidance, awareness, and advisory roles alongside enforcement to improve compliance.
Compounding of Offences: First-time, non-imprisonable offences can be compounded by paying a penalty. Repeat offences within five years, however, cannot be compounded.
Decriminalization of Offences: The Code replaces imprisonment for certain first-time offences with monetary fines (up to 50% of the maximum fine), making the framework less punitive and more compliance-oriented.
Code of Social Security 2020
Expanded ESIC (Employees State Insurance) Coverage:ESIC now applies pan-India, eliminating the criteria of “notified areas.” Establishments with fewer than 10 employees may voluntarily opt in with mutual consent of employers and employees. Coverage would be mandated for hazardous occupation and extended to plantation workers.
Time-bound EPF (Employees’ Provident Fund) Inquiries:A five-year limit has been set for initiating EPF inquiries and recovery proceedings, to be completed within two years (extendable by one). Suo-moto reopening of cases has been abolished, ensuring timely resolution.
Reduced EPF Appeal Deposit:Employers appealing EPFO orders now need to deposit only 25% of the assessed amount (down from 40–70%), reducing financial burden and ensuring ease of business and access to justice.
Self-assessment for Construction Cess:Employers can now self-assess cess liabilities in respect to Building and Other Construction Work, previously assessed by the notified Government authority. It reduces procedural delays and official intervention.
Inclusion of Gig and Platform Workers:New definitions are included- “aggregator,” “gig worker,” and “platform worker” to enable social security coverage. Aggregators to contribute 1- 2% of annual turnover (capped at 5% of payments to such workers).
Social Security Fund:A dedicated fund to finance schemes for unorganised, gig, and platform workers, coveringlife, disability, health, and old-age benefits has been proposed. The amount collected through the compounding of offences will be credited to this Fund and used by the Government.
Expanded Definition of Dependents:Coverage extended to maternal grandparents and in case of female employees it also includes dependent parents-in-law, broadening family benefit access.
Uniform Definition of Wages:“Wages” now include basic pay, dearness allowance, and retaining allowance; 50%of the total remuneration (or such percentage as may be notified) shall be added back to compute wages, ensuring consistency in calculating gratuity, pension, and social security benefits.
Commuting Accidents Covered:Accidents during travel between home and workplace are now deemed employment-related, qualifying for compensation.
Gratuity for Fixed-Term Employees:Fixed-term employees become eligible for gratuity after one year of continuous service (earlier five years).
Inspector-cum-Facilitator System:Introduces randomized web-based, algorithm-driven inspections for transparency and wider compliance. Inspectors now act as facilitators to support adherence and reduce harassment.
Decriminalization & Monetary Fines:The code has replaced imprisonment with monetary fines for certain offences. The employer will be given mandatory 30 days’ notice for compliance before taking any legal action.
Compounding of Offences:First-time offences punishable with fines are compoundable- for fine-only: 50% of maximum fine and for fine/imprisonment cases: 75% of maximum fine- reducing litigation and improving ease of doing business.
Digitization of Compliance:Mandates electronic maintenance of records, registers, and returns, cutting costs and improving efficiency.
Vacancy Reporting:Employers shall report vacancies to specified career centres before recruitment, promoting transparency in employment opportunities.
Code of Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions 2020
Unified Registration: A uniform threshold of 10 employees is set for electronic registration. One registration for an establishment has been envisaged in place of 6 registrations in the Acts. This will create a centralised database and promote ease of doing business.
Extension to Hazardous Work: The Government can extend the Code’s provisions to any establishment, even with one employee, engaged in hazardous or life-threatening occupations.
Simplified Compliance: Introduces one license, one registration, one return framework for the establishments, reducing redundancy and compliance burden.
Wider Definition of Migrant Workers: The definition of inter-state migrant workers (ISMW) now covers workers employed directly, through contractors, or migrate on their own. Establishments must declare the number of ISMW. Benefits include: a lump-sum annual travel allowance to native place once in 12 months and portability of public distribution system and social security benefits across states along with access to a toll-free helpline.
Health and Formalization: Free annual health check-ups for employees,
Formalization via appointment letters: Appointment letters specifying job details, wages, and social security will be given to enhance transparency and accountability.
Women’s Employment: Women can work in all types of establishments and during night hours (before 6AM, beyond 7PM) with consent and safety measures, fostering equality and inclusion.
Expanded Media Worker Definition: “Working journalists” and “cine workers” now include employees in electronic media and all forms of audio-visual production.
National Database for Unorganised Workers: A national database to be developed for unorganized workers including migrants to help migrant workers get jobs, map their skills and provide other social security benefits.
Victim Compensation: Courts can direct at least 50% of fines imposed on offenders to be paid as compensation to victims or their legal heirs in case of injury or death.
Contract Labour Reform: Applicability threshold has been raised from 20 to 50 contract workers. All India license valid for 5 years against work-order based license to be provided to the contractor. For contract labour, beedi and cigar manufacturing and factory: a common license is envisaged and provision of deemed license afterexpiry of prescribe period is introduced. Moreover, the license shall be auto-generated. Provision of contract labour board has been done away with and provision for appointment of designated authority to advise matters on core and non-core activities is introduced.
Safety Committees: Establishments with 500 or more workers will form safety committees with employer-worker representation, enhancing workplace safety and shared accountability.
National Occupational Safety & Health Advisory Board: A single tripartite advisory board replaces six earlier boards to set national safety and health standards across sectors, ensuring uniformity and quality.
Decriminalisation & Compounding of Offences: Offences punishable by fine only to be compounded by paying50% of the maximum fine; those involving imprisonment or fine or both by 75%. Criminal penalties(imprisonment) replaced by civil penalties like monetary fines, promoting compliance over punishment.
Revised Factory Thresholds: Applicability increased from 10 to 20 workers (with power) and 20 to 40 workers(without power), reducing compliance burden for small units.
Social Security Fund:Establishes a fund for unorganised workers, financed through penalties and compounding fees, for their welfare and benefit delivery.
Contract Labour- Welfare & Wages: Principal employers to provide welfare facilities like health and safety measures to contract workers. If the contractor fails to pay wages, the principal employer has to pay unpaid wages to the contract labour.
Working Hours & Overtime:Normal working hours capped at 8 hours/day and 48 hours/week. Overtime allowed only with worker consent and paid at twice the regular rate.
Inspector-cum-Facilitator System:Inspectors will now act as facilitators with an objective to help employers comply with law, rules and regulations rather than merely policing them.
Code of Industrial Relations 2020
Fixed Term Employment (FTE):Allows direct, time-bound contracts with full parity in wages and benefits; gratuity eligibility after one year. The provision reduces excessive contractualization and offers cost efficiency to employers.
Re-skilling Fund:To train retrenched employees, this fund has been set up from the contribution to be made by an industrial establishment for an amount equal to 15 days wages for every worker retrenched. This is in addition to retrenchment compensation. The amount will be credited to the workers account within 45 days of retrenchment.
Trade Union Recognition:Unions with 51% membership get recognition as the Negotiating Union; otherwise, a Negotiating Council is formed from unions, not less than 20% membership of trade union. Such an arrangement strengthens collective bargaining.
Expanded Worker Definition:Covers sales promotion staff, journalists, and supervisory employees earning up to Rs. 18,000/month.
Broader Definition of Industry:Includes all systematic employer-employee activities, regardless of profit or capital, widening access to labour protections.
Higher Threshold for Lay-off/Retrenchment/Closure:Approval limit raised from 100 to 300 workers; States may enhance the limit further. The provision will simplify compliance and contribute to formalization.
Women’s Representation:Ensures proportional representation of women in grievance committees for gender-sensitive redressal.
Standing Orders Threshold:Raised from 100 to 300 employees, easing compliance and enabling flexible workforce management.
Work-from-Home Provision:Permitted in service sectors by mutual consent, improving flexibility.
Industrial Tribunals:Two-member tribunals consisting of judicial and administrative member for quicker dispute resolution.
Direct Tribunal Access:Parties may approach tribunals directly after failed conciliation within 90 days.
Notice for Strikes/Lockouts:Mandatory 14-day notice for all establishments to promote dialogue and minimize disruptions.
Expanded Definition of Strike:Includes mass casual leave also within its ambit” to prevent flash strikes and ensure lawful action.
Decriminalization & Compounding:Minor offences made compoundable with monetary penalties, promoting compliance over prosecution.
Digital Processes:Enables electronic record-keeping, registration, and communication for transparency and efficiency.
Labour Codes shall have wide spread impact –personal, social, industrial and economic. It will help organize labour and social welfare enhancing life of crores of labour force in India. It will also impact many sectors in terms of increased cost but it shall be beneficial in larger national interest. It will also reorganize employment and jobs restructuring in industrial sector.
**************