India’s four new Labour Codes—Code on Wages, Industrial Relations, Social Security, and OSH&WC—came into force on November 21, 2025, consolidating 29 existing laws into(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) modern, simplified frameworks for wages, worker rights, social security (including gig/platform workers), and workplace safety, aiming for better welfare, compliance, and global alignment.
The Four Codes:
1. Code on Wages, 2019.
2. Industrial Relations Code, 2020.
3. Code on Social Security, 2020.
4. Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (OSH Code).
Key Impacts:
1. Wages: Standardized minimum wages and payment rules, with fixed-term employees now eligible for gratuity after one year.
2. Social Security: Extended coverage to gig, platform, and contract workers.
3. Industrial Relations: Streamlined dispute resolution and employment terms.
4. Safety & Health: Improved standards with an inspector-cum-facilitator approach.
5. Compliance: Simplified processes with single registration and return systems.
Purpose: These reforms aim to modernize India’s labor laws, enhance worker welfare, simplify compliance for businesses, and align with international best practices for a more resilient, future-ready workforce for Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
KEY CHANGES AT A GLANCE
| Aspect | Pre-Labour Reforms (Before Labour Codes) | Post-Labour Reforms (After Labour Codes) |
|---|---|---|
| Appointment Letters | No mandatory appointment letters; many workers employed informally without written proof | Mandatory appointment letters for all workers |
| Social Security Coverage | Limited coverage; large informal sector excluded | Universal social security under Code on Social Security, 2020 including gig & platform workers |
| Minimum Wages | Applicable only to scheduled employments; many workers uncovered | Statutory right to minimum wages for all workers under Code on Wages, 2019 |
| Timely Payment of Wages | No uniform mandatory compliance; delays common | Mandatory timely payment of wages |
| Preventive Healthcare | No legal obligation for employers to provide regular health check-ups | Free annual health check-ups for workers above 40 years |
| Women Workforce Participation | Restrictions on night shifts and certain occupations | Women allowed night work and all occupations, subject to consent and safety measures |
| ESIC Coverage | Limited to notified areas and industries; establishments with <10 workers mostly excluded | Pan-India ESIC coverage; mandatory even with one worker in hazardous processes; voluntary for small units |
| Compliance Burden | Multiple registrations, licenses, inspections, and returns | Single PAN-India registration, single license, single return |
| Nature of Employment | High informality; weak documentation | Formalisation of workforce through codified rights |
| Governance Approach | Fragmented laws and enforcement | Simplified, harmonised labour law framework |
Benefits of Labour Reforms Across Key Sectors:
1. Fixed-Term Employees (FTE):
-
- FTEs to receive all benefits equal to permanent workers, including leave, medical, and social security.
- Gratuity eligibility after just one year, instead of five.
- Equal wages as permanent staff, increasing income and protection.
- Promotes direct hiring and reduces excessive contractualisation.
2. Gig & Platform Workers:
-
- ‘Gig work’, ‘Platform work’, and ‘Aggregators’ have been defined for the first time.
- Aggregators must contribute 1–2% of the annual turnover, capped at 5% of the amount paid/payable to gig and platform workers.
- Aadhaar-linked Universal Account Number will make welfare benefits easy to access, fully portable, and available across states, regardless of migration.
3. Contract Workers:
-
- Fixed-term employees (FTE) will increase employability and ensure social security, legal protection like benefits equal to permanent employees.
- Fixed-term employees will become eligible for gratuity after one year of continuous service.
- Principal employer will provide health benefits and social security benefits to contract workers.
- Workers to get free annual health check-up.
4. Women Workers:
-
- Gender discrimination legally prohibited.
- Equal pay for equal work ensured.
- Women are permitted to work night shifts and in all types of work (including underground mining and heavy machinery), subject to their consent and mandatory safety measures.
- Mandatory women’s representation in grievance redressal committees
- Provision to add parents-in-law in Family Definition of Female employees, expanding dependent coverage and ensuring inclusivity.
5. Youth Workers:
-
- Minimum wage is guaranteed for all workers.
- All workers to get appointment letters, – promoting social security, employment history and formal employment.
- Worker exploitation by employers is prohibited—payment of wages during leave has been made mandatory.
- To ensure a decent standard of living, workers will receive wages as per the floor wage determined by the Central Government.
6. MSME Workers:
-
- All MSME workers covered under the Social Security Code, 2020, eligibility based on employee count.
- Minimum wage guaranteed for all workers.
- Workers will have access to facilities such as canteens, drinking water, and rest areas.
- Provisions for standard working hours, double overtime wages, and paid leave.
- Timely wage payment ensured.
7. Beedi & Cigar Workers:
-
- Minimum wages guaranteed for all.
- Working hours capped at 8 -12 hours per day, 48 hours per week has been capped.
- Overtime Work beyond prescribed hours, to be consent based and pay at least double the normal wage rate.
- Timely payment of wages ensured.
- Workers eligible for Bonus after completing 30 days of work in a year.
8. Plantation Workers:
-
- Plantation workers are now brought under the OSHWC Code and the Social Security Code.
- Labour Codes apply to plantations with more than 10 workers or 5 or more hectares.
- Mandatory safety training on handling, storing, and using chemicals.
- Protective equipment mandatory to prevent accidents and chemical exposure.
- Workers and their families to get full ESI medical facilities; Education facilities for their children are also guaranteed.
9. Audio-Visual & Digital Media Workers:
-
- Digital and audio-visual workers, including journalists in electronic media, dubbing artists, and stunt persons will now receive full benefits.
- Mandatory appointment letter for all workers – clearly stating their designation, wages, and social security entitlements.
- Timely payment of wages ensured.
- Overtime Work beyond prescribed hours, to be consent based and pay at least double the normal wage rate.
10. Mine Workers:
-
- The Social Security Code treats certain commuting accidents as employment-related, subject to conditions of time, and place of employment.
- Central Government notified standards to standardize workplace occupational safety and health conditions.
- Health safety for all workers will be ensured. Free annual health check-up will be provided.
- Limit on working hours set to 8 to 12 hours per day, 48 hours per week to ensure health and work-life balance.
11. Hazardous Industry Workers:
-
- All workers will receive free annual health check-ups.
- Central Government will frame national standards for better safety of workers.
- Women can work in all establishments, including underground mining, heavy machinery, and hazardous jobs, ensuring equal job opportunities for all.
- Mandatory safety committee at each site for on-site safety monitoring, and safe handling of hazardous chemicals ensured.
12. Textile Workers:
-
- All Migrant Workers (direct, contractor-based and self-migrated) to get Equal wages, welfare benefits and PDS portability benefits.
- Workers can raise claims for upto 3 years for settlement of pending dues, facilitating flexible and easy resolution.
- Provision for double wages for workers for overtime work.
13. IT & ITES Workers:
-
- Release of Salary mandatory by the 7th of every month. Transparency and trust ensured.
- Equal pay for equal work made mandatory, women’s participation is strengthened.
- Facility for women to work night shifts in all establishments – women to get opportunity to earn higher wages.
- Timely resolution of harassment, discrimination, and wage related disputes.
- Guarantee of social security benefits through fixed-term employment and mandatory appointment letters.
14. Dock Workers:
-
- All Dock workers to get formal recognition, Legal Protection.
- Mandatory appointment letters to guarantee social security benefits.
- Provident fund, pension, and insurance benefits ensured for all, whether contract or temporary dock workers.
- Employer-funded annual health check-ups mandatory.
- Dock workers to get mandatory medical facilities, first aid, sanitary and washing areas, etc., to ensure decent work conditions and safety.
15. Export Sector Workers:
-
- Export sector fixed term workers to receive gratuity, provident fund (PF), and other social security benefits.
- Every worker to have the option of availing annual leaves after 180 days of work in a year.
- Every worker to get right to timely wage payment and no unauthorized wage deductions and no wage ceiling restrictions.
- Women allowed to work in night shifts with consent, ensuring opportunity to earn higher income.
- Safety and welfare measures include mandatory written consent, double wages for overtime, safe transportation, CCTV surveillance, and security arrangements.
Beyond the major welfare initiatives already highlighted, the Labour Codes introduce several further reforms that strengthen worker protection and simplify compliance for employers:
-
- National Floor Wage to ensure no worker receives a wage below the minimum living standard.
- Gender-neutral pay and job opportunities, explicitly prohibiting discrimination—including against transgender persons.
- Inspector-cum-Facilitator system, shifting enforcement towards guidance, awareness and compliance support rather than punitive action.
- Faster and predictable dispute resolution, with two-member Industrial Tribunals and the option to approach tribunals directly after conciliation.
- Single registration, single licence and single return across safety and working-conditions requirements, replacing multiple overlapping filings.
- National OSH Board to set harmonised safety and health standards across sectors.
- Mandatory safety committees in establishments with 500+ workers, improving workplace accountability.
- Higher factory applicability limits, easing regulatory burden for small units while retaining full safeguards for workers.
In line with the wide-ranging consultations carried out during the drafting of the Labour Codes, the Government will likewise engage the public and stakeholders in the framing of the corresponding rules, regulations, schemes, etc. under the Codes. During transition, the relevant provisions of the existing labour Acts and their respective rules, regulations, notifications, standards, schemes, etc. will continue to remain in force.
Weaknesses and criticisms
1. Dilution of Workers’ Bargaining Power: Higher thresholds for standing orders and layoffs (e.g., Industrial Relations Code) reduce protections for workers in medium-sized establishments. Easier retrenchment and closure powers for employers weaken collective bargaining. Risk of “hire and fire” flexibility without commensurate social security depth.
2. Ambiguity in Definitions & Excessive Delegation: Many critical aspects (minimum wage fixation, social security schemes, thresholds) are left to rules, schemes, and executive notifications. Terms like “gig worker benefits”, “floor wage”, and “appropriate government” lack clarity.
3. Informal Sector Still Vulnerable: Though codes promise universal coverage, actual access depends on registration, portability, and fiscal capacity of States. Gig and platform workers are recognised, but benefits are not rights-based—they depend on future schemes.
4. Weak Trade Union & Right-to-Strike Provisions: Industrial Relations Code makes strikes harder by extending prior notice requirements even to non-essential sectors. Recognition of negotiating unions is threshold-based, disadvantaging fragmented labour- Article 19(1)(c) vs regulatory restrictions.
Dilution of Workers’ Bargaining Power IRC2020
1. Higher Thresholds for Standing Orders: Under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, the applicability of standing orders—which define service conditions such as classification of workers, hours of work, termination procedures and grievance redressal—has been raised from 100 to 300 workers (Section 28).
As a result:
-
- A large number of medium-sized establishments (100–299 workers) are now exempt from mandatory standing orders.
- Workers in such units lose predictability and transparency in service conditions.
- Management gains unilateral discretion over work rules, reducing workers’ institutional bargaining leverage.
Empirical relevance: Most manufacturing units in India fall in the 100–300 worker range, making this dilution widespread rather than marginal.
2. Easier Retrenchment, Layoff and Closure: The Code raises the threshold for prior government approval for retrenchment, layoff and closure from 100 to 300 workers (Section 77).
This enables employers in medium-sized firms to:
-
- Retrench workers without prior state scrutiny.
- Use termination as a credible threat, weakening unions’ ability to negotiate wages and conditions.
This shifts bargaining power structurally towards employers, especially where alternative employment is scarce.
3. Introduction of Fixed-Term Employment (FTE): The Code legitimises fixed-term employment across sectors, allowing employers to hire workers for limited durations with no obligation for permanency.
While FTE workers are entitled to statutory benefits, in practice:
-
- Job insecurity discourages unionisation.
- Workers hesitate to raise demands fearing non-renewal of contracts.
Thus, formal equality in law translates into informal precarity in practice.
4. Weakening of Collective Action: The Code introduces stricter conditions for strikes, including longer notice periods and extended prohibitions during conciliation and adjudication.
This:
-
- Curtails workers’ most effective bargaining tool.
- Tilts dispute resolution towards managerial discretion rather than negotiated settlements.
5. “Hire and Fire” without Social Security Depth: While the Code enhances employer flexibility, social security expansion under the Social Security Code remains partial:
-
- Unemployment protection remains limited.
- Gig and informal workers lack effective income replacement mechanisms.
This asymmetry creates flexibility without security, undermining workers’ negotiating capacity.
5. Compliance Simplification May Reduce Inspections: Shift to web-based inspections and self-certification may reduce deterrence. Inspector-cum-facilitator model risks regulatory capture in weak institutional contexts.
6. Occupational Safety Provisions: Uneven & Under-Enforced: OSH Code expands coverage but implementation depends on State capacity. Small establishments and informal worksites may escape effective safety oversight.
7. Gender Concerns: Safety vs Consent Paradox: Allowing women to work night shifts is progressive, but safety responsibilities are largely employer-defined. In practice, women workers may face implicit coercion to “consent”.
8. Federal & Implementation Challenges: Labour is a Concurrent List subject, but States vary widely in readiness to frame rules. Delayed rule-making has stalled full operationalisation of codes.
9. Limited Fiscal Commitment: Expanding social security without clear funding roadmap. Heavy reliance on employer/worker contributions. Risk of under-funded welfare architecture.
The core criticisms
| Area | Core Criticism |
|---|---|
| Industrial Relations | Weakened job security, harder strikes |
| Social Security | Non-justiciable benefits for gig workers |
| Wages | Executive discretion |
| OSH | Enforcement gap |
| Gender | Safety concerns |
| Governance | Excessive delegation |
| Federalism | Uneven State readiness |
| Ethics | Formal rights, weak real protection |
Constitutional and ILO problems
| Framework | Conflict |
|---|---|
| Article 14 | Unequal protection for workers in similar establishments |
| Article 19(1)(c) | Procedural restrictions weaken effective union activity |
| Article 21 | Job insecurity undermines dignity of livelihood |
| ILO Convention 87 & 98 | Dilution of freedom of association and collective bargaining |
Way Forward:
1. Flexibility with Guaranteed Security (Flexi-Security Model): Link ease of retrenchment with automatic social security triggers. Make social security rights-based, not scheme-dependent.
2. Lower Thresholds or Graduated Protections: Introduce graded standing orders and adopt simplified standing orders for establishments with 100–299 workers, full standing orders beyond 300.
3. Strengthen Collective Bargaining Mechanisms: Mandate works committees / grievance redressal councils even in non-unionised workplaces.
4. Rebalance Right-to-Strike Provisions: Retain notice requirements but limit them to essential services. Protect strike as a last-resort bargaining tool, not an illusionary right.
5. Deepen Social Security for Retrenched Workers: Create a National Worker Transition Fund-funded jointly by Centre, States, and employers.
6. Institutionalise Social Dialogue: Revive tripartite mechanisms (government–employers–workers).
7. Constitutional Alignment: Explicitly align labour rules with Article 14, Article 19(1)(c), Article 21, DPSPs (Articles 39, 41, 42, 43) and ILO-Consistent Labour Conventions 87 & 98.
ILO: “Labour is not a commodity.”
B.R. Ambedkar: “Political democracy cannot last unless it lies at the base of social democracy.”
CONCLUSION
Over the past decade, India has expanded social-security coverage dramatically, rising from about 19% of the workforce in 2015 to more than 64% in 2025, ensuring that protection and dignity reach workers across the country, and also earning recognition in the global arena for this milestone achievement in social protection.
The implementation of the four Labour Codes marks the next major step in this trajectory, further widening the social-security net and embedding portability of benefits across states and sectors.
By reducing compliance burden and enabling flexible, modern work arrangements, the Codes boost employment, skilling and industry growth, reaffirming the Government’s commitment to a pro-worker, pro-women, pro-youth and pro-employment labour ecosystem.
29 Laws subsumed under the Four Labour Codes
I. Code on Wages, 2019
| S. No. | Earlier Labour Law | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Payment of Wages Act | 1936 |
| 2 | Minimum Wages Act | 1948 |
| 3 | Payment of Bonus Act | 1965 |
| 4 | Equal Remuneration Act | 1976 |
II. Industrial Relations Code, 2020
| S. No. | Earlier Labour Law | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Trade Unions Act | 1926 |
| 6 | Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act | 1946 |
| 7 | Industrial Disputes Act | 1947 |
III. Code on Social Security, 2020
| S. No. | Earlier Labour Law | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | Employees’ Compensation Act | 1923 |
| 9 | Employees’ State Insurance Act | 1948 |
| 10 | Employees’ Provident Funds & MP Act | 1952 |
| 11 | Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act | 1959 |
| 12 | Maternity Benefit Act | 1961 |
| 13 | Payment of Gratuity Act | 1972 |
| 14 | Cine-Workers Welfare Fund Act | 1981 |
| 15 | Building & Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act | 1996 |
| 16 | Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act | 2008 |
IV. Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020
| S. No. | Earlier Labour Law | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | Factories Act | 1948 |
| 18 | Mines Act | 1952 |
| 19 | Dock Workers (Safety, Health & Welfare) Act | 1986 |
| 20 | Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act | 1970 |
| 21 | Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act | 1979 |
| 22 | Plantations Labour Act | 1951 |
| 23 | Working Journalists & Other Newspaper Employees Act | 1955 |
| 24 | Working Journalists (Fixation of Rates of Wages) Act | 1958 |
| 25 | Motor Transport Workers Act | 1961 |
| 26 | Beedi & Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act | 1966 |
| 27 | Sales Promotion Employees (Conditions of Service) Act | 1976 |
| 28 | Cine-Workers & Cinema Theatre Workers Act | 1981 |
| 29 | Building & Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment & Conditions of Service) Act | 1996 |
Best State Practices on Labour Laws (India)
| State | Best Practices |
|---|---|
| Maharashtra | Labour Welfare Fund Digitization – |
| Karnataka | Social Security for Gig & Platform Workers – |
| Kerala | Strong Trade Union Engagement & Tripartism |
| Tamil Nadu | Comprehensive OSH Enforcement (Factories & Mines) – |
| Telangana | Single Labour Portal with Compliance Calendar – |
| Rajasthan | Welfare Boards for Construction & Unorganised Workers – |
| Haryana | Night Work Safety Protocols (Women Workers) |
| Punjab | Sectoral Minimum Wage Advisory Panels |
| Jharkhand | Skill-Linked Social Protection for Mines & Minerals Workers |
| Andhra Pradesh | Online Grievance Redressal Across Acts |
| Chhattisgarh | Tripartite Wage Boards for Unorganised Workers |
Constitutional Provisions Related to Labourers
| Article | Provision | Relevance to Labour Laws & Reforms |
|---|---|---|
| Article 14 | Equality before law and equal protection of laws | Labour laws must apply uniformly and non-arbitrarily; threshold-based exclusions raise equality concerns |
| Article 19(1)(c) | Right to form associations or unions | Constitutional foundation of trade unions and collective bargaining |
| Article 21 | Right to life and personal liberty | Expanded to include right to livelihood, dignity, safe working conditions |
| Article 23 | Prohibition of trafficking and forced labour | Protects workers from bonded labour, coercive employment, exploitation |
| Article 39(a) | Adequate means of livelihood for all citizens | Supports employment generation and labour welfare |
| Article 39(d) | Equal pay for equal work | Basis for wage equality and gender-neutral pay |
| Article 39(e) | Protection of workers’ health and strength | Justifies OSH laws, safety standards, regulated working hours |
| Article 41 | Right to work, education and public assistance | Constitutional basis for social security, unemployment support |
| Article 42 | Just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief | Supports maternity benefits, humane working conditions |
| Article 43 | Living wage and decent standard of life | Goes beyond minimum wage → living wage concept |
| Article 43A | Participation of workers in management | Supports industrial democracy, works committees |
| Seventh Schedule – Concurrent List (Entry 22, 23, 24) | Trade unions, industrial disputes, labour welfare | Enables Centre–State shared responsibility for labour laws |
Labour Codes: ILO Conventions
| Issue Area | Relevant ILO Convention | Core Principle | Criticism of Labour Codes in this Light |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of Association | ILO Convention No. 87 (1948) | Workers’ right to form unions without interference | Stricter strike notice requirements under Industrial Relations Code may dilute practical freedom of association |
| Collective Bargaining | ILO Convention No. 98 (1949) | Right to collective bargaining | Higher thresholds for union recognition and standing orders weaken bargaining power |
| Forced Labour | ILO Convention No. 29 & 105 | Prohibition of forced labour | Informal workers without effective enforcement may face coercive conditions despite legal reforms |
| Equal Remuneration | ILO Convention No. 100 | Equal pay for equal work | Code on Wages is progressive, but weak enforcement risks persistence of wage discrimination |
| Discrimination (Employment) | ILO Convention No. 111 | Non-discrimination in employment | Women night-work allowed, but safety & consent mechanisms are weak, risking indirect discrimination |
| Minimum Wages | ILO Convention No. 131 | Adequate minimum wages | Floor wage left to executive discretion → uneven protection across States |
| Social Security | ILO Convention No. 102 | Social security as a right | Gig/platform workers recognised but benefits remain scheme-based, not rights-based |
| Occupational Safety & Health | ILO Convention No. 155 | Safe and healthy working conditions | OSH Code depends heavily on State capacity → enforcement deficit |
