What Are the Latest Trends in Labour Laws in India?
Labour laws in India have undergone a sea change in the recent past, reflecting the changing socio-economic landscape of the country. These changes have been aimed at simplifying the regulations, promoting ease of doing business, and taking care of the welfare of workers in a fast-changing economic environment. Here, we explore the latest trends in labour laws in India and their implications for employers and employees.
1. Consolidation of Labour Laws
The most significant Indian labour law is the consolidation of 29 existing laws into four labour codes:
- The Code on Wages, 2019: Contains minimum wages, payment of wages, equal remuneration, and bonus payments.
- The Industrial Relations Code, 2020: Focuses on trade unions, industrial disputes, and worker-employer relations.
- Code on Social Security, 2020: Seeks to cover social security to unorganized workers, gig workers, and platform workers.
- Occupational Safety, Health, and Working Conditions Code, 2020: Safeguarding work environments and conditions in general industries
The codes further ease compliance and aim at striking a balance between the rights of the worker and the promotion of industrial growth.
2. Emphasis on Gig and Platform Workers
The rise of the gig economy has also resulted in the inclusion of gig and platform workers under the ambit of social security in the Code on Social Security, 2020. Provisions include benefits such as life and disability cover, health insurance, and maternity benefits. This move recognizes the growing importance of gig workers and aims to provide them with fundamental rights and protections.
3. Increased Digitalization of Compliance
Digital platforms for labour law compliance: The government emphasizes this aspect to make compliance easy for businesses. Some of these are as follows:
- Online portals for filing returns and obtaining registrations
- Unified Labour Portal (Shram Suvidha Portal) to simplify reporting requirements
- E-SHRAM, a national database for unorganized workers, has been introduced to help improve welfare measures.