Labour Reforms
New labour codes: National minimum wage, gratuity payments after one year, among key changes
All fixed-term employees will become eligible for gratuity payments after one year of continuous service, instead of five years earlier, and a national minimum wage will cover all workers, instead of a few scheduled industries, according to the provisions of the four labour codes that came into effect last Friday.
Explainer | What do the Labour Codes Mean for the Indian Worker?
`While the government asserts these reforms will improve, not just the “ease” but also the “speed of doing business”, trade unions have called these codes a “death knell” for job security.
Critics cite the lack of tripartite consultation as a primary flaw. The Indian Labour Conference (ILC) – the apex mechanism where government, employers and workers deliberated policy – has not convened since 2015. This omission has drawn criticism even from within the ruling establishment.
New labour codes are a simplification that’s been long overdue. Its a strategic shift
The integration of the Code on Wages, the Industrial Relations Code, the Code on Social Security, and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code represents a strategic shift from a rigid, adversarial regulatory model toward a more coherent, rights-based, and facilitative framework… the transition from a traditional inspector system to an “inspector-cum-facilitator” model indicates an institutional shift from enforcement to enabling compliance.
India trade unions condemn new labour codes, plan nationwide protests
Ten major Indian trade unions have strongly criticized the government's new labour codes. They label the overhaul a "deceptive fraud" against workers. These unions, aligned with opposition parties, are demanding the laws be withdrawn. Nationwide protests are planned for Wednesday. The government implemented the four labour codes to simplify rules and attract investment.
New labour codes shift balance sharply in favour of employers, claims CPI(M)
The CPI(M) on Saturday strongly opposed the implementation of the four labour codes, claiming these seek to dilute and abolish long-established rights and entitlements of workers, and shift the balance sharply in favour of employers. The Centre on Friday implemented the four Labour Codes, pending since 2020, introducing worker-friendly measures like a timely minimum wage for all and universal social security, including gig and platform workers, while allowing longer work hours, broader fixed-term employment, and employer-friendly retrenchment rules.
Labour and honour: On the four Labour Codes, the path ahead
The Centre’s announcement to implement the four Labour Codes — they concern wages, industrial relations, social security and occupational safety, health and working conditions — has been heralded by the business and investment community as the biggest reform in a long time. The Codes replace 29 laws that regulated employer-employee relations, and significantly reduce the compliance requirements for a company every year.
Skilling
Massage is the new career frontier for India’s blind
Taking a cue from Japan and China, NGOs are training blind masseurs and companies are hiring them. ‘I wanted to play to their capability, not on the sympathy card.’
Working Conditions
Deaths, Suicide Claims, Resignations: What's Pushing Poll Officers To Edge
At least nine Booth-Level Officers - foot soldiers in the contentious revision of voter lists before a flurry of Assembly elections next year - have died, by suicide or otherwise, across the country over the past week, including in poll-bound West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. Their deaths have focused attention on demands on the hapless BLOs, for most of whom this is a second (and low-paying) gig.
Work Pressure, Unrealistic Deadlines: What’s Behind BLO Deaths, Suicide Claims And Resignations During SIR 2.0 | Explained
SIR 2.0: The claims of work pressure pushing the Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to the edge have been hogging the headlines since the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced its intention to update the voter list in 12 states and union territories through a special intensive revision (SIR). At least 9 BLOs - the fundamental unit of officers carrying out the contentious revision of voter lists have died over the past weeks across the country, primarily by suicide.
BLO deaths: EC moves fast after audio surfaces of official claiming stress, TMC sharpens attack
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on Monday took cognisance fter an audio recording of a Booth Level Officer surfaced on social media, in which he expressed work-related stress amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of the electoral roll in Kerala.
News from States
Government Jobs in Bihar LIVE: बिहार में सरकारी नौकरी को लेकर बड़ा ऐलान!
VIDEO: नई सरकार की पहली कैबिनेट के बाद नीतीश कुमार ने सोशल मीडिया पोस्ट शेयर कर कहा कि सात निश्चय-2 के तहत वर्ष 2020 से 2025 के बीच 50 लाख युवाओं को सरकारी नौकरी और रोजगार दिया गया है और अब अगले पांच वर्षों यानी 2025–30 में 1 करोड़ युवाओं को नौकरी एवं रोजगार देने का लक्ष्य तय किया गया है.
MP Cabinet approves 373 new posts in AYUSH Hospitals across 13 districts
The Cabinet has approved 373 posts and 806 human resource services on a call bas to operate 50-bed AYUSH hospitals in 12 districts and a 30-district. The sanctioned.posts include 52 Class-1 posts, 91 Class-2 posts and 230 Class-3 posts.
Women in the Workforce
Women workforce increased from 12% to 36% in 8 yrs: CM
Lucknow. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday said the women's participation in UP's workforce has recorded a threefold increase in the last eight years and urged them to contribute more in the state's development.
Layoffs and Hirings
Layoffs are piling up, raising worker anxiety. Here are some companies that have cut jobs recently
Here are some of the largest job cuts announced recently:
In November, HP (HP) said this week it expected to lay off between 4,000 and 6,000 employees. Also in November, Verizon (VZ) began laying off more than 13,000 employees. General Motors (GM) will lay off about 1,700 workers across manufacturing sites in Michigan and Ohio in late October, as the auto giant adjusts to slowing demand for electric vehicles. In long-awaited cuts just months after completing its $8 billion merger with Skydance, Paramount (PSKY) plans to lay off about 2,000 employees — about 10% of its workforce.
WHO to shed over 2,000 jobs by mid-2026, document shows
Geneva: The World Health Organization said its workforce would shrink by nearly a quarter - or over 2,000 jobs - by the middle of next year as it seeks to implement reforms after its top donor, the United States, announced its departure.
Labour Demands
Pain of dailywagers of Jammu and Kashmir
For decades, they have worked in government offices, schools, colleges, power projects, irrigation canals, forests, and municipal bodies. They open offices before the officers arrive and lock them after everyone leaves. Still, they are treated as outsiders, surviving on hope and meagre daily wages that have not seen justice for years.