India stands on the cusp of a new HR law era. The government has
proposed replacing several major national labor legislations with
four codes - codes on wages, industrial relations, social security
& welfare, and safety & working conditions.
With globalization, the labor market in India has undergone
tremendous changes; however, labor laws have failed to keep pace.
Presently, labor laws in India are a hotchpotch of almost 140
legislations (besides all rules, regulations, orders, and circulars
issued under each of these legislations) at the national &
state levels. Several of these laws were enacted during or prior to
India's independence, and were meant for the industrial sector.
While this may feel like a paradise for us HR lawyers, it is not
conducive to commerce or growth. In fact, it is unfortunate that
while labor laws in India were designed to promote progress, they
have ended up becoming a stumbling block. The rise of the informal
(unorganized) sector, is the
