Budget FY25: Central trade unions call for scrapping of four Labour Codes and the new pension scheme

A joint platform of 10 central trade unions, barring the RSS-affiliated Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh, has asked the government to scrap the four Labour Codes and the new pension scheme, replacing them with 29 labour laws and the old pension scheme respectively.

In their pre-budget meeting with finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday, the unions reiterated their demand for a minimum wage of not less than Rs 26000 per month and urged the government to immediately convene the Indian Labour Conference, saying it’s the highest tripartite forum and the government has not convened its meeting since a decade now.



Citing the recent notification by the ministry of labour and employment reducing the rates of penalty levied against defaulting employers under the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation, the unions said, “this has been done keeping the Central Board of Trustees of EPFO in the dark and without any consultation with the unions whatsoever.”

“Not only that our suggestions and demands are ignored, your governments have been implementing policies diametrically opposite to those bypassing all tripartite and bipartite democratic mechanisms and institutions,” the unions said.



The trade unions suggested government to enhance resource mobilization through enhanced corporate tax and wealth tax, raise the ceiling limit for the income tax rebate for the salaried class, set up the social security fund and fill up all the existing vacancies in the central government departments and public sector undertakings with regular employment while doing away with contract jobs.

“Privatisation of PSUs and its latest format, the National Monetisation pipeline, should be stopped forthwith,” the unions demanded.

The unions also called for regularization of scheme workers and statutory minimum support price for all farm products with guaranteed procurement.

The 10 central trade unions included the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), the Trade Union Coordination Centre (TUCC), the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), the Hind Mazdoor Sabha, the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), the All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) and the Labour Progressive Federation (LPF) along with other sectoral federations and associations.