India: Employment Litigation/ Tribunals

The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 commonly known as the POSH Act provides a statutory framework for addressing complaints pertaining to sexual harassment at workplace.

There is a practice so entrenched in Indian public administration that it has become almost invisible. A government body needs workers. Instead of following the constitutionally mandated process of open recruitment, it hires on contract, daily wages, or ad hoc terms. Years pass. Sometimes decades. The worker performs the same duties as a regular employee, sits at the same desk, reports to the same officer, and keeps the institution running. On paper, however, they remain ‘contractual’. No pension. No provident fund. No job security. No career progression.

On September 16, 2026, the Union Cabinet approved the proposal of the Ministry of Labour & Employment (“L&E Ministry”) to increase the wage ceiling for mandatory coverage under the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation ("EPFO") from INR 15,000 per month to INR 25,000 per month (“Amendment”).

In a significant ruling strengthening the procedural safeguards under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013...

The Tribunal awarded £20,735.91 (approximately INR 29 lakhs) in compensation to an Irish woman who suffered repeated racial harassment at the hands of her company’s director. The Tribunal found that the company’s director repeatedly targeted her Irish heritage through mocking slurs- including “potato”, “Paddy”, “stupid Paddy” and “pikey”.

The High Court of Delhi through its Judgment dated 11.05.2026 in Rajeshwar Dayal Aggarwal v. M/s. Enicar Machine (India) upheld the Award passed by the Labour Court (“Award”) holding that the Government of NCT of Delhi was not the “Appropriate Government” competent to make the reference for adjudication of the industrial dispute, since Mr. Rajeshwar was employed and allegedly terminated at Faridabad, Haryana.

Welcome to the eleventh edition of the e-Bulletin (Volume VII) brought to you by the Employment, Labour and Benefits practice group of Khaitan & Co.

The Indian labour law regime is currently undergoing its most significant structural transformation in over 70 years.

On November 21, 2025, India implemented a historic reform of its labor law architecture. Two significant labor codes – Industrial Relations Code (2020) and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSHWC) Code (2020) –