Labour & Employment

Can your employer terminate you without notice in India? In most cases, no. An employer who ends the service of an eligible employee must ordinarily give notice or pay in lieu of notice, and where the law on retrenchment applies, must also pay compensation. Termination that ignores these requirements can be challenged as illegal. The exact protection depends on whether you are a workman under the labour statutes and on the terms of your contract. This guide explains the statu

The Supreme Court has ruled that long-serving casual labourers who were granted temporary status are entitled to pension even if they were never formally regularised before retirement. The decision in Bhikhani Devi v. Union of India, reported as 2026 INSC 612 and delivered on 1 June 2026, grants relief to former Department of Posts workers and the widow of a deceased employee, and reshapes how pensionary benefits are assessed for decades of unbroken service. A Bench of Justic

In a significant ruling that narrows the scope of what constitutes a "workplace" under Indian sexual harassment law, the Bombay High Court has held that a shared autorickshaw used by employees for daily commuting does not qualify as a workplace under the Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) Act, 2013. The Division Bench of Justices Suman Shyam and Firdosh Pooniwalla, in Siddhesh Pradeep Satpute v State Bank of India, quashed an Internal Committee (IC) order passed against a

Maternity benefit in India is a statutory right that guarantees eligible women paid leave and job protection around childbirth. The principal law is the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, significantly strengthened by the 2017 amendment, which extended paid maternity leave to 26 weeks for most women. This guide explains who is covered, how much leave and pay you are entitled to, and the practical steps to claim your maternity benefit from your employer without losing your job or yo

The Ministry of Labour and Employment has set 21 June 2026 as the deadline for platform aggregators to register their gig and platform workers on the eShram portal, India's national database for unorganised workers. The mandate arises from the Code on Social Security, 2020, which for the first time brings gig workers, platform workers, and unorganised workers within the statutory social security framework. Aggregators that fail to comply face penalties under Section 133 of th

The Supreme Court of India, in Atul Chauhan v State of Haryana, has drawn a critical distinction between financial assistance and government appointment under Rule 23(1) of the Haryana Civil Services (General) Rules, 2016 (as amended in 2019). The bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and N. Kotiswar Singh held that financial assistance provided under Rule 23(1) to the family of a government servant who dies in harness is distinct from and cannot be equated with a right to appointme

The Ministry of Labour and Employment notified the Code on Wages (Central) Rules, 2026 on 8 May 2026, marking a significant milestone in India's labour reform exercise. These rules, framed under Section 67 of the Code on Wages, 2019, provide the procedural framework for implementing the Code in sectors where the Central Government is the appropriate government. The notification follows a public consultation on the draft Code on Wages (Central) Rules, 2025, and several provisi

A woman who faces sexual harassment at her workplace has a clear legal route to redress under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, commonly called the POSH Act. The law requires most employers to set up an internal forum to receive and decide complaints, and it lays down timelines designed to ensure a reasonably quick inquiry. This guide explains how to file a POSH complaint, who decides it, and what to expect at each

Promotion rules for government employees have produced one of the most litigated questions in Indian service law: when recruitment rules change, should existing vacancies be filled under the old rules or the new ones? The Supreme Court has now answered with a clear statement of principle. In Jagdish Prasad and Others v P M Manoj Kumar and Others, reported as 2026 LiveLaw (SC) 596 and decided on May 27, 2026, a bench of Justice Pankaj Mithal and Justice S V N Bhatti held that

If your employer has not paid your salary or has failed to deposit your Provident Fund (PF) contributions, Indian labour law provides clear remedies that you can pursue without significant cost. This guide explains the step-by-step process for filing a complaint for unpaid wages under the applicable labour laws, and a separate process for raising a grievance with the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) for PF defaults. Both remedies are available to employees in the

Non-payment or delayed payment of salary is one of the most common employment disputes in India. Whether you are a factory worker, a salaried professional, or a senior executive, Indian law provides multiple legal remedies for recovering unpaid wages. This guide explains the step-by-step process for addressing salary non-payment, the applicable laws, the complaint mechanisms available, and the remedies suited to different types of employment. Step 1: Document the Non-Payment

The Ministry of Labour and Employment issued a notification on May 13, 2026, under Section 25(1)(b) of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (OSH Code), mandating that no worker shall be required or permitted to work continuously for more than five hours without a rest interval of at least thirty minutes. The notification came into force on May 14, 2026, and applies to establishments covered by the OSH Code across India. This is one of the first su

India's four Labour Codes, officially notified by the Ministry of Labour and Employment on 21 November 2025, began full enforcement from 1 April 2026. These codes consolidate 29 existing labour laws into four streamlined statutes: the Code on Wages, the Industrial Relations Code, the Code on Social Security, and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code. The single most impactful change for salaried employees is the 50% wage rule, which restructures how empl

India's four consolidated Labour Codes, which subsume and replace 29 legacy labour laws, have introduced significant changes to the regulation of working hours, overtime, and the definition of employees and commercial establishments. The Code on Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions, 2020 (OSH Code) and the Code on Social Security, 2020 (SS Code), read with their respective draft rules notified by various State Governments in 2025 and 2026, increase the maximum d

India has consolidated 29 existing labour laws into four unified Labour Codes: the Code on Wages, 2019; the Industrial Relations Code, 2020; the Code on Social Security, 2020; and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020. While these codes were enacted between 2019 and 2020, the central government targeted April 1, 2026 for full operational implementation across all sectors. The most significant change for employers in 2026 is the 50 percent wage rule