Karnataka government forms tripartite committees for formulation of Labour Code Rules

The Karnataka government has formed tripartite committees to look into the formulation of the State government rules for the four Labour Codes notified by the Central government. 

The four committees, one for each Labour Code and comprising representatives from the Labour Department, trade unions, and employers, have been formed to revise and finalise the draft rules and issue the required notifications. 

Minister’s assurance

The development follows a meeting held by Labour Minister Santosh Lad with employer and employee representatives on February 11.  

While the State had previously formed committees to look into the same, they comprised only Labour Department officials. During the meeting with the Minister, the union and industry representatives shared concerns and feedback regarding the draft rules published by the government. Following this Mr. Lad assured that the existing committees will be converted into tripartite committees.  

Each committee now consists of 17-19 members. 

Feedback to be analysed

The Labour Department recently published the draft rules for all four Codes. The draft rules are open for feedback for 45 days. 

After the closure of the feedback window, the committees will analyse the feedback and provide inputs for the preparation of notifications to be issued by the State Government. 

Following the publication of the draft rules, the trade unions had raised several objections regarding the proposals to increase working hours and impose restrictions on the right to strike, among others. 

It was also criticised that the draft rules were published without consulting the industry and union leaders.