Parliament approves Industrial Relations Code Amendment Bill

The Parliament has passed the Industrial Relations Code (Amendment) Bill, 2026 with the Rajya Sabha approving it on Thursday evening. Earlier in the day the Lok Sabha had passed the legislation. Replying to a short debate on the Bill, Minister for Labour and Employment Dr Mansukh Mandaviya said, the amendment bill has been brought for legal clarity. Mentioning details, he said, annual health check-ups have been made mandatory for workers above 40 years of age under the four Labour Codes. The Minister said, guarantee of equal pay for equal work for women and men workers has been ensured under the Labour Codes. He added that under the Labour Codes, a guarantee has been ensured to provide an appointment letter along with a job to every youth. Madvaviya said, the opposition against the Labour Codes is merely motivated by politics.

#BudgetSession2026

इस विधेयक में युवाओं को नियुक्ति पत्र देने की गारंटी दी गई है। हर उस युवा को, जिसे नौकरी मिलेगी, हर हाल में उसको नियुक्ति पत्र देना होगा |#LokSabha में श्रम और रोजगार मंत्री @mansukhmandviya #Parliament #IndustrialRelations #LabourReforms@LabourMinistry pic.twitter.com/n4lhqhPt5T

— SansadTV (@sansad_tv) February 12, 2026

Opposing the legislation, Jairam Ramesh of Congress said, the Bill will not enable ease of hiring. He alleged that these labour codes are anti-labour. Supporting the Bill, YSRCP MP Ayodhya Rami Reddy Alla said that this amendment seeks to address a narrow but important drafting concern. Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, Dola Sen of TMC, Niranjan Bishi of BJD, Sandosh Kumar P of CPI, V Sivadasan of CPI (M), M Thambidurai of AIADMK and R Girirajan of DMK participated in the discussion. After passing the Bill, the Upper House took up Special Mentions where Members raised different issues.