Labour Laws then and now

The relics who work in the factories,the predominants who we see working by the construction sites and lower labour class that makes the raw material possible,these are the key group of workers  that help fasten the production of an economy.The primary set of people,and not only these,even the top mangerials who are the spinal chords of every manufacturing units,requires a courtroom that protects them from any sort of nuance.Who embellishes there working interest,hours and flexibility.

Hence to restore the interests of employers,Trade Unionism was first born in Great Britain,Later the movement felt its ignitions in India too.Its History can be explained into three periods-Period Prior to First World War , Period upto Independence,and Post Independence Period till now.In this Article we will be focusing majorly on the Post Independence Period,the laws that came into being,the issues faced in adherence of these laws,the challenges faced from those times till now,the changing norms and abolition of Laws in recent time due to the spread of COVID pandemic and recent commotion in the respect of the same.

 

There is always a struggle located at root level,that gets converted into the buoyant force to get itself noticed.There definitely has been certain struggles or mis-behaviours felt by the workers world-wide that led to the enforcement of such Labour Laws.One major concern comes from the fact of ever increasing Globalisation.It is clearly contributing to increased integration of labor markets and closing the wage gap between workers in advanced and developing economies, especially through the spread of technology.Due to lack of ample of jobs at villages or suburbs ,labourers migrate in search of work,and still companies were not restoring there wage standards,due to which they have felt themselves stuck in deep quagmire.The organisations were not flexible in timings and were not catering to the needs of the clients located at different time zones.Theses and many more were the key factors that has given birth to the enforcements of the Labour Laws.

 

Labour Law comes into play which connects workers,employing entities , trade unions and the government under the umbrella of certain global standards.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.

 

The entire adherence of the Labour Laws come with the courtroom that helps make the Global Labour Standards.Now,What are the Global Labour Standards,these are the standards that are stated in our laws,or prescribed by the International Labour Standards or those that are perceived by the Buyer.The ILO has made it obligatory to compete for a brighter future in the world of work and requires masses to understand and prophesize the drives that demands changes,and mend the laws already in operations,ensuring which,we as a team would be ready to respond to rapidly changing events.International Labour Standards has worked diligently and came up all the way long back in 1919 with the International Labour Standards which forfoldedly deals in promoting and restoring the oppertunities to labours to make them enjoy the decent and productive work in conditions of freedom,equity , security and dignity.The core labour standards have been crystalised to nine major issue based on the eleven conventions of the International Labour organization,the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on Rights of the Child.These 9 major issues are  Social Accountability 8000 (SA-8000) Standards-No Child Labor,  No forced Labor,  Health and safety, Freedom of Association and Right to collective bargaining,Discrimination,  Discipline,  Working hours ,Compensation ,Management Systems.The entire standards revolve around these mark points which dictates  barring of the worker’s exploitation. 

 

As the standards have been made and marked,later masses felt the dearth of compliances to made to adhere to these standards.Therefore,in India, a company has to make a wide variety of compliances periodically.Labour Law Compliance is considered of great importance to any organisation having a business place in India.In this era of ulterior development,India is the most popular business landmarks of the world.The impact of corporate culture on the society is so substantial that even the laymen is now trying there hands on setting up there own business,and why not,our government has now emphasised aggressively over such provisions.Therefore, to regulate such setting up of businesses and corporate sector,amendments have been made in corporate laws of India from time to time.No matter whether the company is public or private; it has to adhere to the Indian corporate laws. The Compliance includes the Industrial Safety and Health,it deals with the proper and hygienic work environment for the employee that do not   harm the mental and physical well-being of its workers.The Industrial Relations that are to be maintained should not be in a vivacious form.The wages given to the workers should be adhered to the Wages Laws. The prohibition for Protection of Unorganised Labour should be mandated.There should be compliance and due diligence of the laws mentioned.Amongst these,the most important one to throw light at is the Wages Act.

 

Let us now skim through the most important Wage Code adhering to which an employer should treat their workers. With the growth of industries in India, problems relating to payment of wages to persons employed in industry took an ugly turn. The industrial units were riot making payment of wages to their workers at regular intervals and wages were not uniform. The industrial workers were forced to raise their heads against their exploitation.. The tensions were kept before the Royal Commission on Labour which was appointed in 1929.In 1933 the Payment of Wages Bill, 1933, was introduced in the Legislative Assembly and circulated for the purpose of-eliciting opinions.The Payment of Wages Bill, 1935 having been passed by the Legislative Assembly received its assent on 23rd April, 1936. It came on the Statute Book as THE PAYMENT OF WAGES ACT, 1936 (4 of 1936).It was enacted with a view to ensuring that wages payable to employed persons covered by the Act were disbursed by the employers within the prescribed time limit and that no deductions other than those authorised by law were made by them.Since then , when the enactment of this law has started,spectrum of amendments kept there way up to eradicate the issues that were felt over the years.The amendments were made and the Laws kept coming to keep pace with ever increasing demands and competition in this arena.

The Minimum Wages Act 1948,giving both the Central government and State government authority in fixing wages. The act is legally non-binding, but compulsory. Payment of wages below the minimum wage rate amounts to forced labour.

The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 is done at two levels.The Act is being implemented by the Central Government in relation to any employment carried on by or under the authority of the Central Government or a railway administration, or in relation to a banking company, a mine, oil field or major port or any corporation established by or under a Central Act.

The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 provides for the payment of bonus to persons employed in certain establishments, employing 20 or more persons, on the basis of profits or on the basis of production or productivity and matters connected there with.The minimum bonus of 8.33% is payable by every industry and establishment under section 10 of the Act. The maximum bonus including productivity linked bonus that can be paid in any accounting year shall not exceed 20% of the salary/wage of an employee under the section 31 A of the Act.

And now,the recent amendment has been made to ensure the proper restoration of interests of the workforce in the Form of The Code of Wages 2019,this was introduced in Lok Sabha by Ministry of Labour on July 23,2019.It seeks to reflect on the wage and bonus payment in all the industries,manufacturing units or trades.The Code replaces all the aforementioned laws stated above.The Code apply to all employees.  The central government makes wage-related decisions for employment such as railways, mines, and oil fields, among others.  State governments make decisions for all other employment. According to the Code, the central government fix a floor wage, taking into account living standards of workers.  Further, it may set different floor wages for different geographical areas.  Before fixing the floor wage, the central government obtain the advice of the Central Advisory Board and may consult with state governments. The Code prohibits employers from paying wages less than the minimum wages.The central or state government may fix the number of hours that constitute a normal working day.  In case employees work in excess of a normal working day, they will be entitled to overtime wage.

Although these standards and laws are made universal.But there exist some ground level reality that by default keep arising as these laws get practised by the masses.There exist some existential loopholes that are faced by the industries at large.The Approval that the factory needed to be get for the Industrial Safety , Health and Welfare are tedious. The entire blueprint that needs to come into account for the organisation's goals and culture ,  manpower planning and recruitment  and manpower outsourcing plans have to be made lucid enough to provide transparency.

 

Labour Law Compliance is an important pedestal for the businesses of all sizes. The fast pace of changing the laws and regulations have always represented a quagmire for the companies. Henceforth, failure to keep up with these dynamic rules can carry significant headaches. Let us just focus over certain issues as to what happens at the roots to enact the successful labour laws. One major concern comes from the fact of ever increasing Globalisation. It is clearly contributing to increased integration of labor markets and closing the wage gap between workers in advanced and developing economies, especially through the spread of technology.