Reforming labor laws is currently as the main topic. With many state governments reforming labor laws. It included raising work time in factories from 8 hours to 12 hours. Eight-party leaders on Friday wrote to President Ram Nath Kovind urging him to intervene to protect workers’ rights. They accused the Central Government of using the coronavirus pandemic as an excuse to water down labor laws.
“Under the excuse of combating the Covid-19 pandemic, there were much dramatic reforms in the form of the country’s current labor laws. It will jeopardize working people’s lives and well-being. Since the national shutdown was imposed, the world is already experiencing the most cruel tragic aspects of the plight of the migrant works. Far from preserving the universal right to life and dignity, the circumstances of today are barbaric,’ said the leaders in the letter.
The Freight Train Crushed 16 Migrant Workers
“Using the pretext of battling the pandemic, the daily working hours was from eight to twelve hours through executive orders in various states. For instance, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Punjab without amending the Factories Act. Some other states are likely to join this growing list. The state government of Uttar Pradesh has suspended all labor laws except three. It goes for a period of three years. Uttar Pradesh state government has repealed all labor laws for a period of three years, bar three.
According to the rail accident in Aurangabad, 16 migrant workers slept on railroad tracks. Then, the train crushed to death by a freight train. After that, the leaders said, “The lightening of restrictions was not followed by the requisite safety measures and environmental issues.”
The leaders gave their response. They said the government had done very little to look after the people who lost all their livelihood. And then, they estimated that since the lockdown started, at least 14 crore employees had lost jobs.
