India’s New Labour codes expand Women’s access to night shifts, hazardous sectors

The new Labour Codes introduce significant, progressive provisions designed to modernize India’s labour regulations and meet contemporary economic needs, focusing heavily on gender parity. These reforms establish a framework that safeguards the rights of women workers while expanding their professional opportunities across all sectors, including night shifts and hazardous industries. The collective measures aim to strengthen women’s economic participation and foster a more resilient, gender-balanced labour ecosystem.

Enhanced Maternity and Family Support

The Code on Social Security mandates substantial maternity benefits. A woman must have worked for a minimum of 80 days in the 12 months preceding the expected delivery to qualify. Eligible women receive a benefit equal to their average daily wages for a maximum leave period of 26 weeks, up to eight weeks of which can be taken before delivery.

Crucially, the Codes extend this support to adoptive and commissioning mothers, granting them 12 weeks of maternity benefit from the date the child is received.

The certification process for maternity-related conditions has been simplified. Proof of pregnancy, delivery, miscarriage, or related illness may now be furnished by an accredited social health activist (ASHA), a qualified auxiliary nurse, or a midwife, in addition to a registered medical practitioner, streamlining a process previously limited by the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.

For post-natal support, women are entitled to a medical bonus of ₹3,500 if the employer fails to provide free pre-natal, confinement, and post-natal care. Upon returning to work, women are allowed two breaks daily for nursing the child until the child reaches 15 months of age.

Workplace Safety and Infrastructure

To support working mothers, establishments employing 50 or more workers must provide a crèche facility. Employers must allow women four visits a day to the crèche, including rest intervals. This provision, governed by both the Social Security Code and the Occupational Safety Code, supports mothers with children below the age of six. Furthermore, employers may allow women to work from home following maternity leave, based on mutual agreement regarding the nature of the work and conditions.

Equality and Decision-Making

The Code on Wages, 2019 explicitly prohibits gender discrimination in recruitment, wages, and employment conditions for the same work or work of similar nature, ensuring equal pay for equal work.

Expanding women’s professional scope, the Codes permit women to work in all establishments for all types of work, including night shifts (before 6 a.m. and beyond 7 p.m.) with their consent. The employer is obligated to provide adequate safety, facilities, and transportation arrangements for those working extended hours.

Finally, the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 mandates that the Grievance Redressal Committee (GRC) must include women representatives in proportion to their share of the total workforce, ensuring a fair voice in dispute resolution. Similarly, the Codes require that one-third of the members in the Central and State Advisory Boards be women, guaranteeing their representation in policy-making concerning minimum wages and increasing employment opportunities.

These provisions collectively establish a more secure, inclusive, and empowering work environment, positioning the reforms to encourage greater female labour force participation and contribute to the nation’s economic growth.