Historical Development of Labour Laws in India:

The Indian Labour Laws owe its existence from the British empire. Most of the labour legislations were
enacted prior to India's independence. The post independence enactment of important legislations in
the areas of employee security and welfare derive their origin partly from the vision of independent
India's leaders and partly from the provisions in the Indian Constitution and international conventions
like the International Labour Organization (ILO). The labour legislations were also enacted keeping in
mind the international standards on Human Rights and United Nations Protocols.

Labour legislations in India has a history of over 125 years. Beginning with the Apprentice Act, passed
in 1850, to enable children brought up in orphanages to employment when they come of age, several
labour laws covering all aspects of industrial employment have been passed. The labour laws regulate
not only the conditions of work of industrial establishments, but also industrial relations, payment of
wages, registration of trade unions, certication of standing orders, etc. In addition, they provide social
security measures for workers. They dene legal rights and obligations of employees and employers
and also provide guidelines for their relationship. In India, all laws emanate from the Constitution of
India. Under the Constitution, labour is a concurrent subject, i.e., both the Central and State
governments can enact labour legislation, with the clause that the State legislature cannot enact a law
which is repugnant to the Central law. A rough estimate places the total number of enactments in
India to be around 160.

The Apprentice Act of 1850 was followed by the Factories Act of 1881 and the first State act was the
Bombay Trade Disputes (and Conciliation) Act, 1934, followed by the Bombay Industrial Disputes Act,
1938, which was amended during the war years. This was replaced by the BIR Act, 1946. The Central
Government at this time introduced the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946. In 1947,
the government replaced the Trade Disputes Act with the Industrial Disputes Act, which was later
modied. This law is the main instrument for government intervention in industrial disputes. After
Independence, many laws concerning social security and regulation of labour employment were
enacted, such as the ESI Act, 1948, EPF and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, Payment of Gratuity
Act, 1972, Equal Remuneration Act, 1976. Etc.

Types of Labour Legislation in India:

1) Protective and employment legislation

2) Social security legislation

Pawan
3) Kumar (Asst.
Regulatory Professor)
legislation. Page 1
A list of Labour Legislation in India: Legislation Related to Industrial Relations:

The Trade Union Act, 1926 and the Trade Union Amendment Act, 2011 The Industrial Employment
(Standing Orders) Act, 1946 The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. Legislation Pertaining to Wages: The
Payment of Wages Act, 1936 and The Payment of Wages (Amendment) Act, 2005 The Minimum
Wages Act, 1948 The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976

Legislation Pertaining to Women and Children:

The Maternity Benet Act, 1961

The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986

Legislation Pertaining to Social Security:

The Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923 and The Workmen's Compensation (Amendment) Act,
2000.The Employees State Insurance Act, 1948 The Employees” provident Fund and Miscellaneous
Provisions Act, 1952 and The Employees” Provident Fund and Miscellaneous

rovisions (Amendment) Act, 1996 The Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 The Unorganised Workers Social
Security Act, 200

India’s Recent Developments and Reforms in Labour Laws:

The Second National Commission on Labor (2002) proposed that central labor laws be grouped into
classes such as: Industrial Relations, Wages, Social Security, Working conditions and welfare

The Commission proposed this because existing labor laws were outdated, complicated, and had
inconsistencies in their definitions. For the sake of transparency and uniformity, the Commission
recommended that labor codes be simplified.

The Central Government introduced four bills in 2019 to consolidate 29 central laws into 4 labor codes.
There are the following:

1. Industrial Relations Code, 2020 includes 3 laws:

1 The Trade Unions Act, 1926

2 The Industrial Employment (Standing orders) Act, 1946 3 The Industrial Disputes
Act, 1947

It aims to consolidate and amend the laws relating to Trade Unions, conditions of employment in
Pawan Kumar (Asst. Professor) Page 2
industrial establishment or undertaking, investigation and settlement of industrial disputes.
 2. The Code on Wages, 2019 includes 4 laws: 1 The Payment of Wages Act, 1936 2 The Minimum
Wages Act, 1948 3 The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965

4 The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976

It aims to regulate wage and bonus payments in all employments (industry, business, trade and
manufacture).

3. The Code of Social Security, 2020 includes 9 laws: 1.The Employees’ Compensation Act, 1923
2.The Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948

3. The Employees Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952

4. The Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959

6. The Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972

7. The Cine Workers Welfare Fund Act, 1981

8. The Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Cess Act, 1996 9.The
Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008

The code aims to extend social security to all employees and workers either in the organised or
unorganised or any other sectors.

4. Occupational Safety, Health, and Working Conditions Code, 2020 includes 13 laws:

1 The Factories Act, 1948

2 The Plantations Labour Act, 1951

3 The Mines Act, 1952

4 The Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service)

5 The Working Journalists (Fixation of Rates of Wages) Act, 1958 6 The Motor
Transport Workers Act, 1961

7 The Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966 8 The Contract Labour
(Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970
Pawan Kumar (Asst. Professor) Page 3
9 The Sales Promotion Employees (Conditions of Service) Act, 1976
 10The Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of
Service) Act, 1979

11 The Cine-Workers and Cinema Theatre Workers (Regulation of Employment)

12The Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Act, 1986

13The Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and

The code aims to consolidate and amend the laws regulating the occupational safety, health and
working conditions of the persons employed in an establishment.

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