Govt implements landmark labour laws to ensure better deal for India’s workforce

New Delhi, Nov 21 In a landmark decision, the government on Friday announced the implementation of four Labour Codes to simplify and streamline labour laws to ensure better wages, safety, social security and enhanced welfare for India’s workforce.

The four labour codes 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 with effect from November 21, 2025 -- rationalising 29 existing labour laws.

The implementation of the four Labour Codes addresses the long-pending need to move beyond colonial-era structures and align with modern global trends.

With the implementation of the Labour Codes, it has now become mandatory for employers to issue appointment letters to all workers which provides written proof to ensure transparency, job security and fixed employment. Earlier no mandatory appointment letters were required.

Under Code on Social Security, 2020 all workers including gig and platform workers will get social security coverage. All workers will get PF, ESIC, insurance, and other social security benefits. Earlier there was only limited security coverage.

Under the Code on Wages, 2019, all workers will receive a statutory right minimum wage payment which wages and timely payment will ensure financial security. Earlier minimum wages applied only to scheduled industries or employments; large sections of workers remained uncovered.

The Labour codes also ensure that employers must provide all workers above the age of 40 with a free annual health check-up and promote a timely preventive healthcare culture. Earlier there was no legal requirement for employers to provide free annual health check-ups to workers.

The codes also make it mandatory for employers to provide timely wages, for ensuring financial stability, reducing work stress and boosting overall morale of the workers. Earlier there was no mandatory compliance for employers payment of wages.

The new law permits women to work at night and in all types of work across all establishments, subject to their consent and required safety measures. Women will also get equal opportunities to earn higher incomes – in high paying job roles. Earlier, women’s employment in night shifts and certain occupations was restricted.

The new codes also extend ESIC coverage and benefits Pan-India -- voluntary for establishments with fewer than 10 employees, and mandatory for establishments with even one employee engaged in hazardous processes. Social protection coverage will be expanded to all workers. Earlier, ESIC coverage was limited to notified areas and specific industries; establishments with fewer than 10 employees were generally excluded, and hazardous-process units did not have uniform mandatory ESIC coverage across India.

The codes also ease the compliance burden for workers by providing for single registration, PAN-India single license and single return. Earlier, multiple registrations, licenses and returns across various labour laws were required.

Minister of Labour and Employment Mansukh Mandaviya said, “These reforms are not just ordinary changes, but a major step taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the welfare of the workforce. These new labour reforms are an important step towards a self-reliant India and will give new momentum to the goal of a developed India by 2047."

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 four Labour Codes address this need to move beyond archaic structures and align with global best practices. Together, these Codes empower both workers and enterprises, building a workforce that is protected, productive and aligned with the evolving world of work — paving the way for a more resilient, competitive and self-reliant nation.

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