Major Compliance-related Changes under the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020; State Rules are at different stages of finalisation

Continuing our Series on the analysis of the Labour Codes and the recent notifications, this note covers the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (“OSH Code”) which also came into effect on 21st November, 2025. For the OSH Code as well, only Gujarat and Arunachal Pradesh have notified the Rules. The Centre and all the other States are in the process of drafting or finalizing the Rules under the SS Code. For a detailed status of the Rules under the Labour Codes, please refer to the Labour Code Reckoner, 2025 on our website.

We are giving below a preliminary note in the form of comparative analysis of the compliances under the OSH Code with the compliances under existing labour laws. We will continue to carry out similar and detailed thorough checks on other Rules as and when they come into effect and will continue further updates with you from time to time:

Major Compliance-related Changes under the Code:

• Ease of doing business:
  • With the OSH Code gaining effect, in place of individual registration requirement under the Acts repealed by the OSH Code, a consolidated registration has been provided for. Similarly, a consolidated application for cancellation of registration has been introduced to replace separate cancellation intimations provided under various repealed Acts;
  • Consolidated display has been introduced to replace separate display requirements under different repealed Acts;
  • Annual return has also been consolidated under the OSH Code;
• Applicability threshold:
  • Applicability threshold for Inter-state migrant worker has now been made uniform to apply only to establishments/ contractors engaging 10 or more inter-state migrant workers. Earlier the threshold was five;
  • Previously, for Mines the requirement to constitute a safety committee applied upon employing 100 or more workers. Under the OSH Code, the safety committee needs to be constituted by any Mine having 500 or more workers;
• Appointment of Safety Officer:

• Canteen: Earlier, the requirement to provide a canteen was on engaging 250 or more workers in a factory/ building or other contract work or on engaging 100 or more contract labours/ inter-state migrant workers. Now, the requirement is for every employer of any establishment/ mine/ factory/ contractor, etc to provide a canteen on engaging 50 or more workers (including contract labourers);
• Holidays/Shifts: The provision of granting compensatory holidays, prohibiting overlapping shift has now been extended to all establishments. Also, the minimum number of days a worker needs to work in a calendar year for accruing earned leaves has been reduced from 240 days to 180 days;
• Overtime: The details for overtime computation have now been laid down clearly. Also, the maximum number of hours for which a worker can be made to work as overtime, has been increased significantly from 50 hours in a quarter to 125 hours in a quarter for factories. However, such capping is not available in Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996, Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970, Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979, etc.;
• Contract Labour:
  • The threshold for obtaining license to supply or engage contract labour or undertake or execute work through contract labour has now been made uniform to apply only to establishments/ contractors engaging 50 or more contract labours. Earlier the threshold varied from State to State. Also, now a contractor can obtain a single license for the purpose of any specific work order even if the same spans across multiple States. Earlier the contractor was required to obtain separate licenses for each state even if it was under one work order;
  • The primary responsibility for providing facilities or amenities such as toilet, washroom, drinking water, bathing facilities if required, changing room, first aid box, canteen and crèche has now been shifted to the principal employer instead of the contractor in all cases where the contract worker is working at the premises of the principal employer;
  • There is a uniform and detailed list of activities which do not fall under the scope of ‘core activities’ along with exceptions to the same;
  • Extension of Provident Fund, State Insurance and other benefits of regular workers to inter-state migrant worker directly by the principal employer. This was earlier responsibility of contractor. Also, any worker who hails from another state, even if such worker is directly employed and earning up to 18,000 salary per month is an inter-state migrant worker. Additionally, if any such worker changes employment while in such other State, they continue to remain inter-state migrant workers.
• Medical Examination of Mine Workers:
  • Now all medical certificates including all medical examination records with medical history  to depict the occupational dust exposure profile of persons employed or to be employed in a mine is to be retained for 5 years after the person stops working in the mine as against the earlier requirement to maintain these for 10 years after the person stops working in the mine.
  • Now every mine worker has to undergo medical examination every year, contrary to once in 5 years as was required under existing law.

Earlier 20 days prior notice of medical examination was to be served to all mine workers. Under the Code, the mine workers who will undergo medical examination for the first time, have to be intimated through 7 days prior notice. The 20 days prior notice requirement remains unchanged for mine workers who have undergone medical examination previously.

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Source: Ministry of Labour and Employment