India’s lower house of parliament passes key labour reform bills

Bloomberg

India’s lower house of parliament approved a set of long overdue labour legislations that aim to attract investment and make it easier for companies to do business in the South Asian nation.
The new bills include the industrial relations code that will allow companies with as many as 300 workers to fire them without seeking prior government approval, a three-fold jump from the current threshold.
The other two bills that have been approved by the Lok Sabha are related to social security and occupational safety. All three bills now need the approval of the upper house and the president to become laws.
The bills strike a balance between worker welfare and the ease-of-doing business, Santosh Gangwar, minister for labour and employment, said.
India’s maze of labour regulations, both at federal and state level, are considered to be rigid and complex, forcing companies to either remain small, employ fewer workers or use capital-intensive methods of production.