A

Project report

on

“LATEST LABOUR LAW AMENDMENTS OF 2020.

DISCUSSION OF ORIGINAL LAWS AND CHANGES
AND IMPLICATIONS OF IT”

Submitted in the partial fulfilment for the require-

ment of
the degree of

“MASTERS OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

IN LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT”

G.S.S.D.G.S. KHALSA COLLEGE, PATIALA

(SESSION 2020-2021)

SUPERVISOR: SUBMITTED BY:

Dr. Harsandeep Kaur Gunveen Kaur

ROLL NO:
9916

1
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It is a matter of great pleasure to present this Project report on the entitled

“LATEST LABOUR LAW AMENDMENTS OF 2020. DISCUSSION OF ORI-
GINAL LAWS AND CHANGES AND IMPLICATIONS OF IT” undertaken by
me as part of my MBA curriculum. 

I am thankful to Punjabi university Patiala for offering me such a wonderful

challenging opportunity and I express my deepest thanks to faculties of the
college and Dr. Harsandeep Kaur, whose guidance and support was avail-
able to me all the time. I find inadequate words to express my sincere gratit-
ude towards him.

It is my pleasure to pen down these lines to express sincere thanks to my

parents who had complete faith in my capabilities and also giving me the op-
portunity to step in masters for flourishing my personality. I also express my
gratitude towards my mother for placing complete faith and confidence in
my ability to carry this project and for providing me her time inspiration, en-
couragement, help, valuable guidance, constructive criticism and constant
interest. She took personal interest in spite of numerous commitments and
busy schedule to help us complete this project. I am also thankful to my
guide for training me on the subject of “LATEST LABOUR LAW AMEND-
MENTS OF 2020. DISCUSSION OF ORIGINAL LAWS AND CHANGES AND
IMPLICATIONS OF IT”.

I express my deep sense of gratitude to my dear friends for their support and
encouragement during my presentation.

Gunveen Kaur

2
 CERTIFICATE

This is certified that the project “LATEST LABOUR LAW AMEND-

MENTS OF 2020. DISCUSSION OF ORIGINAL LAWS AND
CHANGES AND IMPLICATIONS OF IT” is abonified work done by
Gunveen Kaur Roll no. 9916. A student of G.S.S.D.G.S. Khalsa
College in a partial fulfilment of requirement for the award of Mas-
ter’s in Business Administration by Punjabi University Patiala dur-
ing the academic 2020-2022.

GUNVEEN KAUR

3
 DECLARATION

The undersigned hereby declare that project report entitled “LATEST LA-
BOUR LAW AMENDMENTS OF 2020. DISCUSSION OF ORIGINAL LAWS
AND CHANGES AND IMPLICATIONS OF IT” written and submitted by me
to G.S.S.D.G.S. Khalsa College in partial fulfilment of the requirement for
the reward of Master in Business Administration under the guidance of
my mentor Dr. Harsandeep Kaur is original work and the conclusion drawn
therein is based on the material collector by my own efforts.

-----------------------

GUNVEEN KAUR

Roll No: 9916

4
 INDEX

Sr. No. Chapter Page No.

Chapter -1 Introduction to Labour Law 6-7

Chapter -2 History of Labour Law 8-11

Chapter -3 Evolution of Labour Law 12-13

Chapter -4 Classification Of labour Laws in India 14-16

Chapter -5 Labour Law Amendments Of 2020 17-21

Chapter -6 Changes and Implications of Law 22-23

Chapter -7 Conclusion 24

Chapter -8 Bibliography 25

5
 CHAPTER-1
INTRODUCTION TO LABOUR LAW

Labour law also known as employment law is the body of laws,

administrative rulings, and precedents which address the legal
rights of, and restrictions on, working people and their organiza-
tions. As such, it mediates many aspects of the relationship
between trade unions, employers and employees. In other words,
Labour law defines the rights and obligations as workers, union
members and employers in the workplace. Generally, labour law
covers:
 Industrial relations – certification of unions, labour-man-
agement relations, collective
 bargaining and unfair labour practices;
 Workplace health and safety;
 Employment standards, including general holidays, annual
leave, working hours, unfair dismissals, minimum wage,
layoff procedures and severance pay.

There are two broad categories of labour law. First, collective la-
bour law relates to the tripartite relationship between employee,
employer and union. Second, individual labour law concerns em-
ployees' rights at work and through the contract for work.

The labour movement has been instrumental in the enacting of

laws protecting labour rights in the 19th and 20th centuries.

6
Labour rights have been integral to the social and economic de-
velopment since the industrial revolution.

Labour laws (also known as labour laws or employment laws) are

those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing
entities, trade unions and the government. Collective labour law
relates to the tripartite relationship between employee, employer
and union. Individual labour law concerns employees' rights at
work also through the contract for work. Employment standards
are social norms (in some cases also technical standards) for the
minimum socially acceptable conditions under which employees
or contractors are allowed to work. Government agencies (such
as the former US Employment Standards Administration) enforce
labour law (legislature, regulatory, or judicial).

Labour law is concerned with the establishment of a labour-rela-

tions framework that provides peaceful industrial relations
between labours and organized workers. It is basically related to
the matters of labour-relations, functions of a trade union, an ad-
equate environment of working, conditions under which labours
are working, strikes and security of the labour. While Employ-
ment law or Employment standards law is concerned with the
regulation in statute laws, conditions of the workplace, time of
working, wages, and so on, both, Labour law and Employment
standard laws are commonly related to workers or employees and
their way of working.

7
 CHAPTER-2
HISTORY OF LABOUR LAW

Labour law arose due to the demands of workers for better condi-
tions, the right to organize, and the simultaneous demands of
employers to restrict the powers of workers in many organiza-
tions and to keep labour costs low. Employers' costs can increase
due to workers organizing to win higher wages, or by laws impos-
ing costly requirements, such as health and safety or equal op-
portunities conditions. Workers' organizations, such as trade uni-
ons, can also transcend purely industrial disputes, and gain
political power - which some employers may oppose. The state of
labour law at any one time is therefore both the product of, and a
component of, struggles between different interests in society.

International Labour Organisation (ILO) was one of the first or-

ganisations to deal with labour issues. The ILO was established
as an agency of the League of Nations following the Treaty of Ver-
sailles, which ended World War I. Post-war reconstruction and
the protection of labour unions occupied the attention of many
nations during and immediately after World War I. In Great Bri-
tain, the Whitley 4 Commission, a subcommittee of the Recon-
struction Commission, recommended in its July 1918 Final Re-
port that "industrial councils" be established throughout the
world. The British Labour Party had issued its own reconstruc-
tion programme in the document titled Labour and the New So-

8
cial Order. In February 1918, the third Inter-Allied Labour and
Socialist Conference

(Representing delegates from Great Britain, France, Belgium and

Italy) issued its report, advocating an international labour rights
body, an end to secret diplomacy, and other goals. And in Decem-
ber 1918, the American Federation of Labour (AFL) issued its
own distinctively apolitical report, which called for the achieve-
ment of numerous incremental improvements via the collective
bargaining process.

As the war drew to a close, two competing visions for the post-
war world emerged. The first was offered by the International
Federation of Trade Unions (IFTU), which called for a meeting in
Berne in July 1919. The Berne meeting would consider both the
future of the IFTU and the various proposals which had been
made in the previous few years. The IFTU also proposed includ-
ing delegates from the Central Powers as equals. Samuel Gom-
pers, president of the AFL, boycotted the meeting, wanting the
Central Powers delegates in a subservient role as an admission of
guilt for their countries' role in the bringing about war. Instead,
Gompers favoured a meeting in Paris which would only consider
President Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points as a platform. Des-
pite the American boycott, the Berne meeting went ahead as
scheduled. In its final report, the Berne Conference demanded an
end to wage labour and the establishment of socialism. If these
ends could not be immediately achieved, then an international

9
body attached to the League of Nations should enact and enforce
legislation to protect workers and trade unions.

The British proposed establishing an international parliament to

enact labour laws which each member of the League would be re-
quired to implement. Each nation would have two delegates to
the parliament, one each from labour and management. An inter-
national labour office would collect statistics on labour issues
and enforce the new international laws. Philosophically opposed
to the concept of an international parliament and convinced that
international standards would lower the few protections achieved
in the United States, Gompers proposed that the international la-
bour body be authorized only to make recommendations, and
that enforcement be left up to the League of Nations. Despite vig-
orous opposition from the British, the American proposal was ad-
opted.

The Americans made 10 proposals. Three were adopted without

change: That labour should not be treated as a commodity; that
all workers had the right to a wage sufficient to live on; and those
women should receive equal pay for equal work. A proposal pro-
tecting the freedom of speech, press, assembly, and association
was amended to include only freedom of association. A proposed
ban on the international shipment of goods made by children un-
der the age of 16 was amended to 5 ban goods made by children
under the age of 14. A proposal to require an eight-hour work day
was amended to require the eight-hour work day or the 40-hour

10
work week (an exception was made for countries where pro-
ductivity was low). Four other American proposals were rejected.
Meanwhile, international delegates proposed three additional
clauses, which were adopted: One or more days for weekly rest;
equality of

laws for foreign workers; and regular and frequent inspection of

factory conditions.

The Commission issued its final report on 4 March 1919, and the
Peace Conference adopted it without amendment on 11 April. The
report became Part XIII of the Treaty of Versailles. (The Treaty of
Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I.
It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers.
It was signed on 28 June 1919).

The first annual conference (referred to as the International La-

bour Conference, or ILC) began on 29th October 1919 in Wash-
ington DC and adopted the first six International Labour Conven-
tions, which dealt with hours of work in industry, unemploy-
ment, maternity protection, night work for women, minimum age
and night work for young persons in industry. The prominent
French socialist Albert Thomas became its first Director General.
The ILO became a member of the United Nations system after the
demise of the League in 1946.

11
 CHAPTER-3
EVOLUTION OF LABOUR LAW

The law relating to labour and employment is also known as In-

dustrial law in India. The history of labour legislation in India is
interwoven with the history of British colonialism. The indus-
trial/labour legislations enacted by the British were primarily in-
tended to protect the interests of the British employers. Consider-
ations of British political economy was naturally paramount in
shaping some of these early laws. Thus came the Factories Act. It
is well known that Indian textile goods offered stiff competition to
British textiles in the export market and hence in order to make
India labour costlier the Factories Act was first introduced in
1883 because of the pressure brought on the British parliament
by the textile magnates of Manchester and Lancashire. Thus, In-
dia received the first stipulation of eight hours of work, the aboli-
tion of child labour, and the restriction of women in night em-
ployment, and the introduction of overtime wages for work bey-
ond eight hours. While the impact of this measure was clearly
welfarist the real motivation was undoubtedly protectionist.

12
The earliest Indian statute to regulate the relationship between
employer and his workmen was the Trade Dispute Act, 1929 (Act
7 of 1929). Provisions were made in this Act for restraining the
rights of strike and lock out but no machinery was provided to
take care of disputes.

The original colonial legislation underwent substantial modifica-

tions in the post-colonial era because independent India called
for a clear partnership between labour and capital. The content of
this partnership was unanimously approved in a tripartite con-
ference in December 1947 in which it was agreed that labour
would be given a fair wage and fair working conditions and in re-
turn capital would receive the fullest co-operation of labour for
uninterrupted production and higher productivity as part of the
strategy for national economic development and that all con-
cerned would observe a truce period of three years free from
strikes and lockouts. Ultimately the Industrial Disputes Act (the
Act) brought into force on 01.04.1947 repealing the Trade Dis-
putes Act 1929 has since remained on statute book.

In the post-colonial era, the original colonial laws witnessed sub-

stantial changes when independent India called for a direct rela-
tionship between labour and capital. The content of this partner-
ship was unanimously approved at a tripartite conference in
December 1947 in which it was agreed that labour would be
provided with a fair wage and fair working conditions and that, in
return, capital would receive the fullest cooperation of labour for

13
continuous production and higher productivity as part of the na-
tional economic strategy development and that all concerned
would observe a truce period of three years free from strikes and
lockouts.

CHAPTER-4
CLASSIFICATION OF LABOUR LAW IN INDIA

Labour Laws may be classified under the following heads –

I. Laws related to Industrial Relations such as-

1. Trade Unions Act, 1926

2. Industrial Employment Standing Order Act, 1946.

3. Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.

II. Laws related to Wages such as:

4. Payment of Wages Act, 1936

5. Minimum Wages Act, 1948

6. Payment of Bonus Act, 1965.

7. Working Journalists (Fixation of Rates of Wages Act, 1958

III. Laws related to Working Hours, Conditions of Service and

Employment such as:

8. Factories Act, 1948.

9. Plantation Labour Act, 1951.

14
10. Mines Act, 1952.

11. Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees’ (Condi-

tions of Service and Misc. Provisions) Act, 1955.

12. Merchant Shipping Act, 1958.

13. Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961. 28

14. Beedi & Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act,

1966.

15. Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970.

16. Sales Promotion Employees Act, 1976.

17. Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and

Conditions of Service) Act, 1979.

18. Dock Workers (Safety, Health & Welfare) Act, 1986.

19. Building & Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Em-

ployment & Conditions of Service) Act, 1996.

20. Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Cess Act,

1996

21. Cine-Workers and Cinema Theatre Workers (Regulation of

Employment) Act, 1981

22. Dangerous Machines (Regulation) Act, 1983

23. Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment) Act, 1948

24. Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment) (Inapplicability to

Major Ports) Act, 1997

25. Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry

Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993

26. Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946

27. Mines and Mineral (Development and Regulation Act, 1957

28. Plantation Labour Act, 1951

15
29. Private Security Agencies (Regulation) Act, 2005

IV. Laws related to Equality and Empowerment of Women

such as:

30. Maternity Benefit Act, 1961

31. Equal Remuneration Act, 1976.

V. Laws related to Deprived and Disadvantaged Sections of

the Society such as:

32. Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976

33. Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986

34. Children (Pledging of Labour) Act, 1933

VI. Laws related to Social Security such as:

35. Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923.

36. Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948.

37. Employees’ Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act,

1952.

38. Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972.

39. Employers’ Liability Act, 1938

40. Beedi Workers Welfare Cess Act, 1976

41. Beedi Workers Welfare Fund Act, 1976

42. Cine workers Welfare Cess Act, 1981

43. Cine Workers Welfare Fund Act, 1981

44. Fatal Accidents Act, 1855

45. Iron Ore Mines, Manganese Ore Mines and Chrome Ore
Mines Labour Welfare Cess Act, 1976

16
46. Iron Ore Mines, Manganese Ore Mines and Chrome Ore
Mines Labour Welfare Fund Act, 1976

47. Limestone and Dolomite Mines Labour Welfare Fund Act,

1972

48. Mica Mines Labour Welfare Fund Act, 1946 29

49. Personal Injuries (Compensation Insurance) Act, 1963

50. Personal Injuries (Emergency Provisions) Act, 1962

51. Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008

CHAPTER-5
LABOUR LAW AMENDMENTS OF 2020

Amendments introduced in labour laws in 2020:

Recently, the parliament had passed three bills that completely

changed the face of labour laws. All the existing 29 Labour Law
statutes have been consolidated and only this new law which has
been passed will be governing labour laws in India. The three new
Bills which have been passed by the parliament are The Indus-
trial Relations Code Bill, 2020, The Code on Social Security
Bill, 2020, The Occupational Safety, Health, and Working
Conditions Bill, 2020. There have been various amendments
that have taken place in these codes which are as follows:

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS CODE BILL, 2020-

17
According to the Industrial Employment Standing Orders Act
of 1946, it was important for workplaces hiring more than 100
workers to have service rules formulated specifically mentioning
how the workers should conduct themselves as well as other
rules and regulations to be followed in the workplace and all of
these rules had to be known to the workers compulsorily.  Now
according to the new bill, it has been increased to workplaces
having more than 300 workers. Thereby making it not necessary
for employers to make these rules if they have less than 300 em-
ployees and due to this, it makes it easier for the companies to
hire and remove the employees.

In consonance with the Industrial Disputes Act of 1947 un-

der Section 22, it was made mandatory for employees to give a 6
week notice period before going for a strike in case of any public
utility, this has been amended and public utility has been re-
placed with “Any industrial establishment”. Along with that, if
there is any ongoing dispute settlement in the court, the employ-
ees who want to go on strike have to give a 60-day notice period
to their employers even if the proceedings have been completed.
According to this new provision, the scope to go on strike has
been reduced significantly.

Another amendment introduced in this Bill under Section 83 of

the Industrial Relations Code is that a reskilling fund will be
provided by the employer to any employee who has been re-
trenched and the amount that the person will get will be the
amount as what he would get in the last 15 days of work.

18
SOCIAL SECURITY CODE BILL, 2020-

A provision of this Bill under Section 6(1) states that a new

board would be set up called The National Social Security Board
which would advise the government on new schemes that would
benefit the workers in the unorganised sector or the workers who
work on a temporary basis.
Any employers who hire a person on a temporary basis (gig work-
ers), have to contribute at least 1 or 2% of their annual turnover
for the social security of these gig workers.

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY, HEALTH AND WORKING CONDI-

TIONS BILLS, 2020-

The definition of “Inter-State migrant workers” under Sec-

tion 2 (zf) had changed from what it was in the 2019 Bill. Now it
defines the term as when a person from another willingly comes
to another State in search of work and has an income which is
Rupees 18,000 or less will be termed as Interstate Migrant Work-
ers, this new bill also gives a lot of advantages to the interstate
migrant workers as well.

The definition of “Factory” has been amended from what it was in

the 2019 Bill and according to this Bill, it excludes Mining from
the definition. The other amendments include that the total
working hours of an employee have been fixed to eight hours a
day, and women can work in any workplace and if they are re-

19
quired to work in any dangerous workplace, the employers are
bound to take necessary precautions before.

REASONS FOR SUCH AMENDMENTS –

One of the major reasons as to why there has been such a major
change in the Labour law is because it is the need of the hour es-
pecially given this covid era, the rights of workers have to be pro-
tected. Many workers have been facing a lot of issues regarding
their employment as many are terminated and laid off without a
reason or facing concerns with their workplace environment etc,
therefore it is important for laws also to be amended along with
the development of labour for the smooth functioning of the eco-
nomy.

Moreover, consolidating all the various laws with regard to labour

law is easier to follow and there is no confusion as to the applic-
ability of the laws too.gggggg

REPERCUSSIONS OF SUCH AMENDMENTS-

Like two sides of a coin, there are repercussions to this amend-

ment as well. Some of them are as follows:

20
1. The concept of fixed-term contracts– This, though for the
major part is a boon for the workers as through a fixed-
term contract they can avail benefits even if they are em-
ployed for a short period of time but the issue of domin-
ance can arise and power play can happen as there is no
form of middlemen here and the negotiation is done just
between the employee and the employers, power play can
be a negative factor.

2. Strikes become more difficult– The present Bill makes it

even harder for workers to go on a strike as the amended
procedure has in fact led to a delay in the process of hold-
ing a strike.
3. Not all terms are specified– Though there have been new
inclusions in the definition, it also does not include a few
other definitions of terms which are used often in the
Code such as that of workers who get a salary which ex-
ceeds that of Rupees 18,000, or “manager”, “Supervisor”
etc have not been included.
4. The Civil Court has been barred– The civil court cannot
hear cases with regard to this Bill, but in case of disputes
the employees can notify the specific appellate authority
and the remedy they can seek is only by filing a writ peti-
tion in the high court so this in a way does not allow
people to file their cases starting from a lower court.

21
The sole suggestion would be that new codes are balanced in
terms of cause and effect and they are more equitable with regard
to the employee-employer relationship.

CHAPTER-6
CHANGES AND IMPLICATIONS IN LABOUR LAW
2020

 The central government proposes to replace 29 existing labour laws with

four Codes.  The objective is to simplify and modernise labour regulation.
 
 The major challenge in labour reforms is to facilitate employment growth
while protecting workers’ rights.  Key debates relate to the coverage of
small firms, deciding thresholds for prior permission for retrenchment,
strengthening labour enforcement, allowing flexible forms of labour, and
promoting.  
 
 Further, with the passage of time, labour laws need an overhaul to ensure
simplification and updating, along with provisions which can capture the
needs of emerging forms of labour (e.g., gig work).  This note discusses

22
 these challenges and the approaches taken by the four Codes.
 
 Coverage:  Most labour laws apply to establishments over a certain size
(typically 10 or above).  Size-based thresholds may help firms in reducing
compliance burden.  However, one could argue that basic protections re-
lated to wages, social security, and working conditions should apply to all
establishments.  Certain Codes retain such size-based thresholds.
 
 Retrenchment:  Establishments hiring 100 or more workers need gov-
ernment permission for closure, layoffs or retrenchments.  It has been ar-
gued that this has created an exit barrier for firms and affected their abil-
ity to adjust workforce to production demands.  The Industrial Relations
Code raises this to 300, and allows the government to further increase this
limit notification. 
 
 Labour enforcement:  Multiplicity of labour laws has resulted in distinct
compliances, increasing the compliance burden on firms.  On the other
hand, the labour enforcement machinery has been ineffective because of
poor enforcement, inadequate penalties and rent-seeking behaviour of in-
spectors.  The Codes address some of these aspects.
 
 Contract labour:  Labour compliances and economic considerations
have resulted in increased use of contract labour.  However, contract la-
bour has been denied basic protections such as assured wages.  The
Codes do not address these concerns fully.  However, the Industrial Rela-
tions Code introduces a new form of short-term labour – fixed term em-
ployment.
 

23
  Trade Unions:  There are several registered trade unions but no criteria
to ‘recognise’ unions which can formally negotiate with employers.  The
Industrial Relations Code creates provisions for recognition of unions.
 
 Simplification and updating:  The Codes simplify labour laws to a large
extent but fall short in some respects.  Further, the Code on Social Secur-
ity creates enabling provisions to notify schemes for ‘gig’ and ‘platform’
workers; however, there is a lack of clarity in these definitions.  
 
 Delegated Legislation:   The Codes leave several key aspects, such as
the applicability of social security schemes, and health and safety stand-
ards, to rule-making.  The question is whether these questions should be
determined by the legislature or be delegated to the government. 

CHAPTER-7
CONCLUSIONS

The “Across the Board” Lockdown has and adverse impact on the
business operations as well as the Employee’s. To ease the hard-
ship the Government has issued various Notification / Orders /
Circulars / Letters / Press Release from time to time.

Apart from the updates mentioned in the article the Government

has also issued Lockdown Orders with guidelines and also re-
vised it several times.

24
The workers have been a strong pillar in the development of the
economy from time immemorial and these laws are needed to be
reformed with the needs and development of the working class so
that the laws are also evolved with the passing of time and so
that the rights of the workers are also protected.
The new amendments were very much necessary with regard to
the global crisis that has hit because of which hundreds have lost
their jobs and these laws also help to strike a balance with the
employer-employee relationship which is very much needed.

CHAPTER-8
BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTERNET LINKS-
 Latest labour law amendments : 2020 - iPleaders
 Labour Act.pdf (ncib.in)
 Explained: In the three new labour codes, what changes for
workers & hirers? | Explained News, The Indian Express
 Labour Law Reforms | Ministry of Labour & Employment
 Overview of Labour Law Reforms (prsindia.org)

MAGAZINES-
 Pratiyogita Darpan
 Yojana Magazine

25
  Economic and political weekly
 Down to earth

NEWSPAPER-
 The Economic times
 The Times of India
 The Hindu
 The Indian Express

26