The Labour Ministry will be pushing ahead with the implementation of new Labour Codes ahead of the nationwide strike planned by several trade unions on Feb. 12, sources told NDTV Profit on Monday.
The four new codes — The Code of Wages, 2019, The Industrial Relations Code, 2020, The Code on Social Security, 2020, The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code 2020 — were officially announced on Nov. 21, 2025. According to the government sources, the implementation so far shows acceptance by the workers.
Around 16 trade unions are in support of the codes, whereas 13 are against them, the persons privy to the development said. The codes will come fully into effect from April 1.
Some of the major changes that these codes bring include a new and consistent definition of 'wages' which puts a ceiling on allowances to up to 50% of the total compensation. This is expected to expand retirement benefits such as provident fund and gratuity contributions, but may lessen basic pay.
Contract workers are also expected to receive the same legal benefits as permanent employees, which include receiving gratuity if tenure conditions are met, as well as clarified dispute resolution mechanisms.
Gig, platform, and unorganised workers will now be formally recognised, according to the codes.
However, unions such as the All India United Trade Union and Centre of Indian Trade Unions alleged that the new codes favoured corporate interests. They have called for a nationwide strike on Feb. 12.
Their main criticism is centred around the expansion of the layoff threshold, which, according to them, may make job security more precarious for those working in small businesses. The threshold has been raised from 100 to 300 workers.
The protesting unions further stated that keeping the work hour cap to 48 hours a week may lead to employers increasing shift time periods from eight hours to 12 hours to meet the quote on paper, but have employees work longer hours a day. The unions also stated that centralisation of labour laws may lead to weaker monitoring of labour norm violations by employers.
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