Labour Minister Vasamshetti Subhash said the government was giving labour welfare the “highest priority” and that the implementation of the four labour codes would expand protections rather than reduce them.
Published Nov 28, 2025 | 6:00 AM ⚊ Updated Nov 28, 2025 | 6:00 AM
Labour Minister Vasamshetti Subhash
Synopsis: Andhra Pradesh Labour Minister Vasamshetti Subhash on Thursday sought to reassure workers that the Union government’s rollout of the four Labour Codes will strengthen rights, widen social security and improve workplace safety, amid widespread anxiety that the transition to the new system might threaten their hard-won rights and benefits.
Amid growing unease among workers, who fear that the Union government’s recent implementation of the four Labour Codes may dilute existing safeguards, complicate welfare access and shift the balance in favour of employers, the Andhra Pradesh government has sought to reassure the workforce.
The State government stressed that 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) would each strengthen rights, deepen social security and promote industrial peace.
Doubts about the new codes have been circulating widely, especially among unorganised workers, daily wagers, gig workers and factory employees who worry that the transition to the new system might reduce job security, weaken wage protection or delay benefits they currently rely on.
Against this backdrop, the State government used the platform of a Labour Codes Awareness Conference to underline that Andhra Pradesh intends to become a model labour-welfare State in the country.
At the conference held at a hotel in Vijayawada on Thursday, 27 November, Labour Minister Vasamshetti Subhash and Labour Commissioner Seshagiri Babu jointly briefed the media, detailing the reforms underway and presenting the government’s roadmap for worker protection, workplace safety and employer–employee harmony.
Minister Subhash said the government was giving labour welfare the “highest priority” and that the implementation of the four labour codes would expand protections rather than reduce them.
He argued that Andhra Pradesh’s approach was both progressive and pragmatic, aiming to reassure workers that their rights would be strengthened while also signalling to industries that the State offers a stable regulatory environment.
One of the biggest anxieties among workers relates to whether unorganised and gig-sector labourers will truly be protected. Subhash said lakhs of workers who were previously outside institutional coverage would now be brought under the safety net of social security, insurance and statutory entitlements.
“Our goal is equal wages for every worker, timely payment and a safe working environment,” he said, attempting to calm apprehensions about wage disparities and delayed payments under the restructured system.
For women employees, he noted that expanded maternity benefits, work-from-home options and regulated night-shift permissions would strengthen their safety and participation in the labour force.
The Minister also sought to dispel fears that the Labour Codes were designed to favour industries at the cost of workers. He said the government was actively deepening coordination with industries to increase employment and investment but insisted that “industrial peace and worker welfare are not contradictory – they strengthen each other.”
Labour Commissioner Seshagiri Babu added that the government has begun implementing a comprehensive social security framework across the State. This includes mandatory health check-ups, safety committees and formal appointment letters across establishments, measures that workers have long demanded.
Responding to concerns that migrant and itinerant workers might fall through the cracks under the new system, he said journey allowances, PDS portability and portability of construction workers’ benefits were being ensured for their protection.
He added that digital media workers and dubbing artists, groups traditionally overlooked, were now also covered under the new Codes.
On job-loss anxieties, Seshagiri Babu highlighted the re-skilling fund being implemented to provide immediate financial assistance to workers who face layoffs, a move intended to reduce vulnerability during economic shocks and offer a transition pathway.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the new Labour Codes represent “one of the most important reforms” since the 1991 economic liberalisation.
“By aligning our workforce standards with global best practices, these measures strengthen worker security, ensure fair wages, uphold dignity and support the evolving nature of work, including protections for gig workers and greater parity for women,” he wrote in a post on X.
“This is a decisive step toward making India a world-class, future-ready economy. I commend Prime Minister Narendra Modi for delivering this landmark reform.”
But doubts remain. Political opposition and workers’ anxieties are rising in parallel, sharpening the debate over whether the reforms strengthen or weaken labour rights in the State.
Recently, Left parties, trade unions, miner unions, insurance-sector federations and gig-worker collectives have intensified their protests, arguing that the Codes dilute hard-won protections.
Among the political parties, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] has been the most vocal critic in Andhra Pradesh, charging that the Labour Codes are “anti-worker, pro-corporate” and designed to weaken job security and collective bargaining.
The party’s State leadership recently warned that the Codes could erode minimum-wage guarantees, restrict the right to strike and facilitate easier layoffs.
CPI(M) Politburo member BV Raghavulu recently described the Labour Codes as an attack on the working class and said they were heavily biased in favour of employers. According to him, the main threat was the possible restriction of the right to strike. He argued that labour departments would remain toothless, acting merely as facilitators.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
