PM-EAC Calls for Unified Labour Law

 Unified Labour Law: Relevance

• GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.

 Unified Labour Law: Context

• The Economic Advisory Council to PM has submitted its report on state-level labour reforms in India, to the Prime Minister’s Office in which it has vouched for a unified labour code.

 Unified Labour Law: Key points

• The report has called for a need to focus on urban areas, given their significance from a national income as well as overall employment standpoint.
• EAC has said that a single unified labour code would further simplify the labour laws.
• The EAC has backed a unified labour code, on the lines of Bangladesh Labour Act, 2006.
• EAC mooted for other alternative policy efforts to boost employment generation and industrial growth.
• EAC has said that enhanced focus is needed on
  • Skill building
  • Public infrastructure investment
  • Reducing policy barriers to trade and investment
  • Simplifying laws, and procedures

EAC on 4 labour codes

• EAC has said that the four labour codes did not take a comprehensive view of all labour laws.
• EAC also was of the opinion that the four labour codes has only standardised and streamlined the existing laws without addressing various inconsistencies.
• The EAC-PM is of the view that labour law reforms, though important, are not a magic bullet to boost employment generation, address the high degree of informality or even boost industrial growth.
• EAC has questioned a need for spending political capital on some labour law reforms, which are not enough for employment generation.

Benefits of unified labour law

• EAC said that A ‘single unified labour law’ or reforms aimed at all sectors and nature of jobs would create a supportive business environment for the urban economy.
• It would also allow the service sector and the new-age urban economy to reach new heights.

About four labour codes

• The Ministry of Labour & Employment had amalgamated 29 central labour laws into four Codes.
• These include the Code on Wages, 2019, the Code on Social Security, 2020, the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020.
• These codes are yet to be notified and the Government has planned to introduce it from FY 2022-23.

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