India Today – August 19, 2019

INDEX:VIOLENT

CRIMESAGAINST

WOMENPG

NRC:WHO’SIN,

WHO’SOUT?

PARTIIPG 6

UAPA:WHOISTHE

REALTERRORIST?

PG 1

OBIT:SUSHMA

SWARAJ

PG

UPFRONT

T

wolabourreformbillsintro-
ducedbythegovernmentinthe
LokSabhaonJuly 23 evoked
sharpreactionsfromvariousstakehold-
ers.WhiletheCodeonWagesBill, 2019
waspassedbyParliament,theother
bill—theOccupationalSafety,Health
andWorkingConditions(OSHWC)
Code,2019—isstillpendingintheLok
Sabha.Onthefaceofit,thetwobills
lookdesignedtoensureworkerwelfare

aswellasfacilitateeaseofbusiness.The

CodeonWagesBillseekstoimprove

thewageandbonuspaymentsrules,

besidesmandatinganationalminimum

wage,andtheOSHWCaimstoimprove

workingconditions.InNovember2018,

theInternationalLabourOrganization

saidthat 31 percentofIndianworkers

wereworkinginunhealthyconditions

whilearound 41 percentofthemsaid

theywerepoorlypaid,givingIndia

abottom-endrankof#19among 22

countriesoftheAsia-Pacificregion.

Thebillsarebeingmarketedas

thegovernment’spushtoreformand

simplifythecountry’scomplexlabour

laws.Forinstance,‘wages’alonehas 11

definitionsunderdifferentlaws.The

newproposedlawwillconsolidateall

centrallawsintofourcodes—wages,

industrialrelations,socialsecurity,

andindustrialsafetyandwelfare.The

LABOURREFORM

RATIONALISATION AT THE

COST OF RIGHTS?

ByKaushikDeka

IllustrationbyTANMOYCHAKRABORTY

(^80)
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