By Dr. Gyan Pathak
Had the Modi Government not been undergoing some fresh resistance from the unemployed youths for yet another disastrous policy experiment in defence recruitment, the rules under four controversial labour codes would have been notified by now for their implementation from July 1, as it had been earlier planned, despite stiff resistance from the 10 Central Trade Unions and other employees unions. Even so, as the time closes, the workforce across the country is growing anxious on the prospect of the new rules seeing light of the day, because the Centre is all set to roll them out.
The only legal requirement left now is the notification of the rules framed under the new labour codes within 72 hours from now if the Centre goes ahead to implement them from July 1. The anxiety level among the workforce is therefore rising, while the CTUs are exerting their best to persuade the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment to scrape the codes which they fear would have disastrous consequences on workforce in particular and the industrial relations in the country in particular.
The joint front of 10 Central Trade Unions – INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC – have been agitating against the four controversial labour codes ever since they were passed in the parliament of India. They have been opposing the codes on four major grounds. The Codes on Wages, 2019 is being opposed on the ground that it merely provides a threshold floor-level wage; the Code on Industrial Relations 2020 is being opposed because it allows firms engaging up to 300 employees to retrench workers without seeking state government’s approval; the Code on Occupational Safety 2020 is opposed because it exempts from its ambit labour contractors engaging up to 50 workers, and the Code on Social Security 2020 is being opposed because it does not clarify the Centre’s financial obligations. Even BJP and RSS supported BMS wants modifications in the Code on Industrial Relations and the Code on Occupational Safety. There are numerous other objections, one of them is that the implementation of the four codes would lead to modern day slavery.
Since the Indian Labour Conference (ILC) is not held since 2015, which is the apex level tripartite consultative committee in the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment, the allegation against the Modi government is valid that it brought the codes without consulting even ILC. CTUs have always been alleging that they were not even consulted before bringing out the labour codes and hence these totally ignored even the serious concerns of the workforce that they have been undergoing before and during the COVID-19 crisis. Unemployment have been all time high after independence, and the pandemic has pushed millions of workforce out of jobs. Therefore it is not the opportune time to implement these labour codes which have clear pro-corporate bias.
Not only that, even pro-Modi government trade union Bharatiya Majdoor Sangh (BMS) has some reservations about certain rules of the codes which they want to be renegotiated. Within the Union government, the Economic Advisory Council (EAC) of the Prime Minister had also voiced its concern regarding the codes on the ground that these did not take a comprehensive view of all labour laws but is only amalgamation of 29 central labour laws without addressing inconsistencies therein. EAC had even recommended for a Unified Labour Law in place of these four controversial labour laws.
Nevertheless, if the Centre goes ahead with rolling out the series of new rules under the new labour codes, India will be entering a turbulent phase of industrial relations, because neither the employees nor the employers are fully ready for the implementation of the new labour codes, which were finalized without taking into consideration the change in the world of work induced by the COVID-19 crisis. Both the employers and the employees have still been undergoing unprecedented existential crisis that needs a different set of rules than those the Centre wants to implement under the four labour codes which suits mostly the big corporates at the cost of smaller ones, and the white collar organized workers at the cost of other workforce especially in the informal sector.
Readjustment will be a great problem at this time of crisis when the unemployment is all time high, price rise and inflation has become unaffordable, many of those in jobs have to agree on reduction in wages and salaries on the one hand and longer work hours on the other only to retain in jobs, and many have simply been undergoing joblessness.
For example, the new rules may trigger increased work hours up to 12 hours a day which may have adverse effect on both physical and mental health of workers, and the week’s total 48 working hour cannot prevent it despite working days capped at 4 days a week with 3 mandatory offs. The new system will not be optional for workers, but for the employers, and many of them may resort to further exploitation of the labour force, because there are neither job security nor social security for the workforce.
The immediate impact on salary may create further hardship for the working force since they have already lost their savings during the pandemic and thereafter. The take-home salary will go down as the PF contributions of the employees and the employer will increase as per the new rule requiring basic salary to be 50 per cent of the gross pay.
The change in definition of “wages” would apply to all social security schemes in future, which will drastically alter their application with respect to workers because it shall exclude component such as house rent allowance, provident fund, conveyance, leave travel, overtime, and commission with a rider that the proposed wages as percentage of gross pay cannot fall below 50 per cent. The definition will increase the gratuity, PF, unavailed leave encashment, overtime liability etc of employer, and it is therefore feared that workforce may get less number of employment opportunity. Its impact on PF will also be limited as contributions have been made voluntary above statutory wage lime of Rs15000 per month.
The workforce fears the codes would bring “ease of exploitation of workers” which Modi government loves to call “ease of doing business”. (IPA Service)
By Dr. Gyan Pathak
Had the Modi Government not been undergoing some fresh resistance from the unemployed youths for yet another disastrous policy experiment in defence recruitment, the rules under four controversial labour codes would have been notified by now for their implementation from July 1, as it had been earlier planned, despite stiff resistance from the 10 Central Trade Unions and other employees unions. Even so, as the time closes, the workforce across the country is growing anxious on the prospect of the new rules seeing light of the day, because the Centre is all set to roll them out.
The only legal requirement left now is the notification of the rules framed under the new labour codes within 72 hours from now if the Centre goes ahead to implement them from July 1. The anxiety level among the workforce is therefore rising, while the CTUs are exerting their best to persuade the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment to scrape the codes which they fear would have disastrous consequences on workforce in particular and the industrial relations in the country in particular.
The joint front of 10 Central Trade Unions – INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC – have been agitating against the four controversial labour codes ever since they were passed in the parliament of India. They have been opposing the codes on four major grounds. The Codes on Wages, 2019 is being opposed on the ground that it merely provides a threshold floor-level wage; the Code on Industrial Relations 2020 is being opposed because it allows firms engaging up to 300 employees to retrench workers without seeking state government’s approval; the Code on Occupational Safety 2020 is opposed because it exempts from its ambit labour contractors engaging up to 50 workers, and the Code on Social Security 2020 is being opposed because it does not clarify the Centre’s financial obligations. Even BJP and RSS supported BMS wants modifications in the Code on Industrial Relations and the Code on Occupational Safety. There are numerous other objections, one of them is that the implementation of the four codes would lead to modern day slavery.
Since the Indian Labour Conference (ILC) is not held since 2015, which is the apex level tripartite consultative committee in the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment, the allegation against the Modi government is valid that it brought the codes without consulting even ILC. CTUs have always been alleging that they were not even consulted before bringing out the labour codes and hence these totally ignored even the serious concerns of the workforce that they have been undergoing before and during the COVID-19 crisis. Unemployment have been all time high after independence, and the pandemic has pushed millions of workforce out of jobs. Therefore it is not the opportune time to implement these labour codes which have clear pro-corporate bias.
Not only that, even pro-Modi government trade union Bharatiya Majdoor Sangh (BMS) has some reservations about certain rules of the codes which they want to be renegotiated. Within the Union government, the Economic Advisory Council (EAC) of the Prime Minister had also voiced its concern regarding the codes on the ground that these did not take a comprehensive view of all labour laws but is only amalgamation of 29 central labour laws without addressing inconsistencies therein. EAC had even recommended for a Unified Labour Law in place of these four controversial labour laws.
Nevertheless, if the Centre goes ahead with rolling out the series of new rules under the new labour codes, India will be entering a turbulent phase of industrial relations, because neither the employees nor the employers are fully ready for the implementation of the new labour codes, which were finalized without taking into consideration the change in the world of work induced by the COVID-19 crisis. Both the employers and the employees have still been undergoing unprecedented existential crisis that needs a different set of rules than those the Centre wants to implement under the four labour codes which suits mostly the big corporates at the cost of smaller ones, and the white collar organized workers at the cost of other workforce especially in the informal sector.
Readjustment will be a great problem at this time of crisis when the unemployment is all time high, price rise and inflation has become unaffordable, many of those in jobs have to agree on reduction in wages and salaries on the one hand and longer work hours on the other only to retain in jobs, and many have simply been undergoing joblessness.
For example, the new rules may trigger increased work hours up to 12 hours a day which may have adverse effect on both physical and mental health of workers, and the week’s total 48 working hour cannot prevent it despite working days capped at 4 days a week with 3 mandatory offs. The new system will not be optional for workers, but for the employers, and many of them may resort to further exploitation of the labour force, because there are neither job security nor social security for the workforce.
The immediate impact on salary may create further hardship for the working force since they have already lost their savings during the pandemic and thereafter. The take-home salary will go down as the PF contributions of the employees and the employer will increase as per the new rule requiring basic salary to be 50 per cent of the gross pay.
The change in definition of “wages” would apply to all social security schemes in future, which will drastically alter their application with respect to workers because it shall exclude component such as house rent allowance, provident fund, conveyance, leave travel, overtime, and commission with a rider that the proposed wages as percentage of gross pay cannot fall below 50 per cent. The definition will increase the gratuity, PF, unavailed leave encashment, overtime liability etc of employer, and it is therefore feared that workforce may get less number of employment opportunity. Its impact on PF will also be limited as contributions have been made voluntary above statutory wage lime of Rs15000 per month.
The workforce fears the codes would bring “ease of exploitation of workers” which Modi government loves to call “ease of doing business”. (IPA Service)
The post Central Trade Unions Get Ready To Fight New Rules For Workers first appeared on IPA Newspack.
