The long pending Labour Codes are once again in focus and the labour ministry is undertaking preparatory work, that would give the new government the option to take them forward, if they so wish.
“The notification of the codes is one of the longest pending items that have been part of the reform agenda as well. The ministry is in the process of reviewing the implementation work for the codes and working on regulations and notifications,” said a senior official. Preparatory work is also on for several provisions in the codes such as the social security fund for informal workers.
Officials noted that most states have now also listed out draft rules under the codes for public consultation and they can be notified as soon as a decision on the implementation of the codes is taken.
“Work is on to ensure that these are ready. The next government, once formed in June, can take a call on how to proceed,” said the official.
In a move towards ease of doing business and aligning labour laws with the evolving economic landscape, the government had consolidated 29 Central labour laws into four Labour Codes. These include 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.
While the Codes have been passed by Parliament, their notification can be done after consensus building with States as labour is a subject on the concurrent list in the Constitution. Accordingly, both the Centre and States can enact legislation on it.
In the past, both industry as well as trade unions had some concerns about the Labour Codes due to which many States were not keen on notifying them. Since then, the Centre has undertaken a number of consultation exercises to build consensus on the various provisions.
