Shram Shakti Niti 2025: India’s Draft Labour Policy Envisions Universal Social Security and Gender-Inclusive Growth

India’s new Draft National Labour and Employment Policy (Shram Shakti Niti 2025) signals a decisive shift toward an integrated, tech-enabled, and worker-centric labour ecosystem. Released for public consultation, the policy envisions universal and portable social security, gender parity in work, and AI-driven governance as foundations for a “developed India” by 2047.

The Story

Unveiled by Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, the draft policy reimagines India’s workforce governance as a seamless ecosystem that “improves protection, productivity, and participation for every worker.” Rooted in the civilisational ethos of śrama dharma—the moral dignity of labour—the policy seeks to unify fragmented welfare schemes into a single, interoperable social security architecture.

At its core lies a universal labour account, merging data and benefits from:

• EPFO (Employees Provident Fund Organisation)

• ESIC (Employees State Insurance Corporation)

• PM-JAY (Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana)

• e-SHRAM Portal

• State Construction and Welfare Boards

This account will be portable across employers, States, and sectors, ensuring that benefits follow the worker—not the workplace.

What the Policy Proposes

1. Universal and Portable Social Security (By 2030)

A “One Nation, One Workforce” framework integrating health, pension, and insurance benefits under a single digital ID. Workers changing jobs or States will retain continuous coverage, preventing lapses and duplication.

2. Workplace Safety and Health Reform

Implementation of the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Code through risk-based inspections, AI-enabled hazard prediction, and near-zero fatality goals.

3. Gender and Youth Focus

• Raise women’s labour participation to 35% by 2030.

• Introduce gender-sensitive safety and ergonomic standards.

• Expand career counselling, skill credits, and entrepreneurship programs for youth.

4. MSME and Digital Simplification

• A single-window digital compliance system with self-certification and simplified returns.

• Integration of labour law filings, inspections, and social benefits on one platform.

5. Green and AI-Enabled Jobs

• Promote sustainable, low-carbon industries and green-skills certification.

• Use AI for predictive workforce planning and monitoring safety compliance.

6. Unified Labour Data Architecture

• A national labour database to synchronise data across ministries.

• An Annual Labour Report and a Labour & Employment Policy Evaluation Index (LPEI) to benchmark State performance.

  Implementation Timeline

  Phase	Timeline	Focus
  Phase I (2025–27)	Institutional setup and integration of databases	Establish a unified social security architecture; merge EPFO, ESIC, PM-JAY, and e-SHRAM; develop legal and IT infrastructure; pilot the universal labour account.
  Phase II (2027–30)	Nationwide rollout and capacity expansion	Implement universal social security accounts nationwide; operationalise district-level Employment Facilitation Cells; launch skill-credit systems; digitise compliance for MSMEs.
  Phase III (Post-2030)	Advanced digital governance and continuous renewal	Transition to fully paperless labour governance; adopt AI-driven analytics for inspections and job mapping; institutionalise the Annual Labour Report and continuous policy upgrades.

   

• Why It Matters

  India’s workforce—comprising over 500 million workers, 90% of whom are in the informal sector—has long struggled with fragmented welfare schemes, overlapping databases, and poor portability.

  The Shram Shakti Niti addresses these structural gaps by:

  • Merging welfare systems into a universal ID-linked labour account.

  • Providing continuity of benefits for migrant and gig workers.

  • Encouraging MSME compliance without red tape.

  • Linking education, skilling, and employability through a national skill-credit framework.

  By targeting inclusivity and efficiency, the policy aims to transform India’s informal economy into a digitally visible, socially protected workforce.

  Implications for the Economy

  For Workers:

  • Guaranteed access to pension, health, and insurance across jobs.

  • Easier claims through a single digital wallet.

  • Improved workplace safety and upskilling pathways.

  For Employers/MSMEs:

  • Lower compliance burden through unified filings and self-certification.

  • Predictable and transparent inspection mechanisms.

  For the State:

  • Real-time labour data for policymaking.

  • AI-based early warnings for labour disputes, accidents, and job losses.

  Challenges Ahead

  • Digital Divide: Integrating rural, informal, and migrant workers remains difficult.

  • Data Security: Linking multiple databases heightens privacy concerns.

  • Inter-Ministerial Coordination: Success depends on real-time collaboration among Labour, IT, Finance, and Skill ministries.

  • Awareness and Literacy: Workers must understand and access benefits seamlessly.

  Conclusion

  The Shram Shakti Niti 2025 marks a transformative step in India’s labour history—moving from fragmented welfare to universal protection and productivity-based inclusion. If implemented with transparency, fiscal discipline, and ethical use of technology, the policy could become the backbone of India’s Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, turning labour from an administrative category into a cornerstone of national development.

  Credit: Reporting inputs adapted from The Hindu.