India Notifies Labour Codes, Extends Social Security to Gig and Platform Workers

New Delhi: The Centre has officially notified the four labour codes, introducing a unified framework intended to expand worker protection, simplify compliance, and extend social security coverage to gig, platform, and unorganised sector workers for the first time. The changes are primarily driven through Sections 113 and 114 of the Code on Social Security, 2020, marking a major shift in India’s approach to employee welfare.
Key Features of the Labour Codes
Universal and Inclusive Social Security
The new codes make gig workers, platform workers, and a large segment of the unorganised workforce eligible for benefits such as insurance, provident fund, maternity care, and gratuity. A National Social Security Board will advise the government on schemes designed for each category of worker.
A national database is also being developed to register unorganised and migrant workers, enabling skill mapping, job facilitation, and delivery of portable social security benefits.
Occupational Safety and Worker Protection
The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSH) Code introduces several worker safeguards, including:

Mandatory appointment letters detailing designation, pay, and social-security provisions.
Paid leave eligibility after 180 days of work in a calendar year, reduced from the earlier 240-day requirement.
A cap of eight working hours per day and 48 per week, with state governments empowered to fix interval timing and spread-over limits.

The OSH Code also allows courts to direct that at least 50 percent of fines imposed in cases of serious injury or death be paid to the affected worker or their legal heirs.
Unified Oversight and Tripartite Representation
Six separate regulatory boards have been replaced with a single National Occupational Safety and Health Advisory Board. The body includes representatives from central and state governments, employer associations, and trade unions and will advise on safety standards across sectors such as mines, factories, construction, docks, and beedi production.
Expanded Coverage for Modern Workforces
Revised Definitions
The updated definitions reflect changing industry structures:

“Audio-visual workers” now include digital creators, dubbing professionals, and stunt artists, who will receive legal recognition and workplace protections.
“Working journalists” include employees across television, radio, and digital media platforms.

Extended ESIC Benefits
Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) coverage, previously limited to notified areas, is now applicable nationwide. Establishments with fewer than 10 employees may also opt in voluntarily if both employers and employees agree.
Lower Gratuity Threshold
Fixed-term employees become eligible for gratuity after one year of continuous service, a substantial reduction from the earlier five-year requirement.
Broader Definition of Family
The Code expands the definition of dependent family members to include parents-in-law of women employees (subject to income limits) and dependent unmarried siblings if parents are deceased.
Digital, Simplified and Supportive Compliance
The labour codes introduce systems aimed at making compliance more transparent and efficient:

Aadhaar-linked Universal Account Numbers to enable portability of benefits across states.
An inspector-cum-facilitator model that focuses on advisory compliance rather than purely punitive enforcement.
Dispute resolution through two-member tribunals to speed up conflict settlement.

Reactions
The government has positioned the reforms as major steps toward formalisation, global alignment and simplification of India’s labour environment. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described the framework as progressive.Trade unions, however, argue that several provisions reduce worker safeguards and shift power toward employers.
About the Four Labour Codes
The reforms are implemented through:

Code on Wages (2019)
Industrial Relations Code (2020)
Code on Social Security (2020)
Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (2020)

Together, the codes seek to streamline labour regulations, expand coverage, and improve working conditions across sectors while encouraging compliance through digital systems and uniform national standards.
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