Minister of State for Labour and Employment Shobha Karandlaje has said the four Labour Codes, which have come into effect fromthe  21st of last month have rationalized 29 existing labour laws for better working conditions, safety, wages, social security and enhanced welfare for workers. These four Labour Codes are the Code on Wages, 2019, the Industrial Relations (IR) Code, 2020, the Code on Social Security, 2020 and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020.

In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on Welfare of Organsised and Unorgansied sectors, the Minister said that these new labour codes mandate appointment letters, universal minimum wages, social security for gig, platform and interstate migrant workers, free annual health check-ups and expanded rights for women to work in all sectors. She said, the Codes enhance worker safety, welfare, and social protection across sectors including unorganized workers.

The IR Code also provides reskilling funds for retrenched workers. The Minister also informed that in addition, the Government is implementing Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana to support employment generation, enhance employability and social security across all sectors, with special focus on the manufacturing sector. The scheme with an outlay of over 99 thousand crore rupees aims to incentivize the creation of more than 3.5 Crore jobs in the country, over a period of 2 years.