Union Cabinet okays labour safety code that will benefit 400 million workers in organised, unorganised sectors

This is the second major labour reform approved by the government after it cleared the Wage Code last week

The Union cabinet on Wednesday approved the labour safety code that will benefit 400 million workers in organized and unorganised sectors.

Union minister Prakash Javadekar briefed the media after the Union Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

“The Union cabinet gave its nod to the labour code,” Union environment minister Prakash Javadekar said.

This is the second major labour reform approved by the government after it cleared the Wage Code last week that contained “provisions of minimum wages and payment of wages to cover employees in both the organised and unorganised sectors”.

The Occupational, Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, also known as the OSH Code, will cover 400 million workers in the organised and the unorganised sectors and encompass provisions from around 13 labour laws.

India’s labour laws are complex and the government wants to simplify them into four codes: wages; OSH; industrial relations; and social security.