Labour Laws and Practice · Law of Industrial Relations

Industrial Relations Code 2020: Overview and Key Definitions

Updated 11 October 2026 · Fact-checked

The Industrial Relations Code, 2020 extends to the whole of India. The Central Government notified 21 November 2025 as its commencement date. It covers trade unions, standing orders and industrial disputes. Under section 104(1), the three earlier Acts stand repealed only as specified in notifications; other provisions continue. To answer questions, state the provision, apply the facts, then conclude.

Understand Industrial Relations Code 2020: Overview and Definitions

Before the Code, three Acts governed industrial relations: the Trade Unions Act, 1926, the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 and the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. The Industrial Relations Code, 2020 deals with the same subjects in one law. It covers trade unions, conditions of employment, and the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes. The three Acts are repealed only to the extent notifications under section 104 specify.

The Code extends to the whole of India. It comes into force on the date the Central Government notifies, and different dates can be set for different provisions. The official text records that the date notified was 21 November 2025 (Notification S.O. 5320(E)). Remember that a commencement clause links the Code to the notification, not to the date of the Act.

Repeal works in a special way. Under section 104, the Central Government may specify in the commencement notification that the three earlier Acts stand repealed from a stated date. The remaining provisions of those Acts stay in force until they are repealed by like notifications. So repeal can be staged, not all at once.

Savings protect past actions. Anything done or any action taken under the repealed Acts, including rules, notifications, appointments, orders or directions, is deemed to be done under the corresponding provisions of the Code. It stays in force to the extent it is not contrary to the Code. Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 also applies to the repeal.

Definitions decide who and what the Code covers. They are in section 2 of the Code. Key terms are industrial dispute, industrial establishment, worker, employer and appropriate Government. Exam questions usually give a set of facts and ask whether a person is a worker, or whether a matter is an industrial dispute. Learn each definition from the wording of section 2, with its inclusions and exclusions. Do not rely on memory for figures such as wage limits.

Key rules to remember

Extent: Industrial Relations Code, 2020 extends to the whole of India (section 1); No State is left out. The Code is a central law applied through the appropriate Government.
Commencement: Comes into force on the date notified by the Central Government; different dates for different provisions (section 1(3)); The official text notes 21 November 2025 under Notification S.O. 5320(E).
Repeal by notification: Trade Unions Act, 1926 + Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 + Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 repealed from the date specified (section 104(1)); Remaining provisions continue until repealed by like notifications.
Savings: Action taken under repealed Acts is deemed taken under the corresponding provisions of the Code, to the extent not contrary to it (section 104(2)); Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 also applies (section 104(3)).
Industrial dispute: Defined in section 2. In outline: a dispute or difference between employers and employers, employers and workers, or workers and workers, connected with employment, non-employment, terms of employment or conditions of labour; Section 2 also extends the definition to disputes about the discharge, dismissal, retrenchment or termination of an individual worker. Read the exact wording in the Code before you quote it.
Worker: Defined in section 2. In outline: a person employed in an industry for hire or reward to do manual, unskilled, skilled, technical, operational, clerical or supervisory work, with listed exclusions such as apprentices, armed forces personnel, and managerial or administrative staff; A person in a supervisory capacity is excluded if wages exceed the limit stated in the definition, or if the duties are mainly managerial. Take the figure from the text of section 2, not from memory.

How to solve Industrial Relations Code 2020: Overview and Definitions questions

Use this order for any question on the overview or a definition under the Code. It keeps your answer in the provision, analysis, conclusion format.

1Identify what is asked: commencement, repeal, or a definition such as worker, employer, industrial dispute or appropriate Government.
2State the rule in plain words, with the section number only where you are sure of it (for example sections 1 and 104).
3List the elements of the definition: who or what is included and what is excluded.
4Match each fact in the question to an element. Note the job actually done, the wages and the type of employer.
5Check for exclusions such as apprentice, managerial role or supervisory pay limit.
6Write the conclusion in one clear sentence, for example: X is a worker, or the matter is an industrial dispute.
7Add a practical point: which authority or forum is relevant, or what the employer should do.

Quickest way: Element-and-exclusion checklist

When to use it: Use when a short case asks whether a person is a worker or a matter is an industrial dispute, and time is short.

Write the definition as two lists: included and excluded.
Tick the facts that fit the included list.
Check each excluded category against the facts, especially the main duties and the wage limit.
Write the conclusion first in one line, then give two lines of reasons.
For repeal questions, name the three Acts, say repeal is by notification, and mention the savings clause.

Common mistakes in Industrial Relations Code 2020: Overview and Definitions

Saying the three old Acts were repealed automatically on the Act's passing.
Students assume every new Act repeals the old one at once.
Fix: Repeal under section 104 happens through the commencement notification, from the date specified. The remaining provisions stay until repealed by like notifications.
Treating every employee as a worker.
The everyday word employee feels wider than the legal definition.
Fix: Apply the exclusions in the definition in section 2: apprentices, armed forces, managerial or administrative roles, and supervisors above the wage limit in the definition or with mainly managerial duties.
Deciding worker status by job title.
Students read the designation in the question and stop there.
Fix: Look at the main duties actually performed and the wages drawn. The title alone does not decide the status.
Saying an individual's dismissal cannot be an industrial dispute because no union is involved.
Students remember that a dispute needs a collective party.
Fix: The definition of industrial dispute in section 2 extends to a dispute about the discharge, dismissal, retrenchment or termination of an individual worker. Check the exact wording in the Code.
Ignoring the savings clause when asked about actions taken under the old Acts.
Students stop at the repeal and forget section 104(2).
Fix: State that actions, rules and appointments are deemed to be under the corresponding provisions of the Code, to the extent not contrary to it.
Mixing up the Central and State Governments as appropriate Government.
The rule depends on the type of establishment and is easy to blur.
Fix: Identify the type of establishment first. Then read the definition of appropriate Government in section 2 to see whether the Central or the State Government is concerned. Do not guess from the nature of the business.

Worked examples

Example 1

Hindustan Components Ltd. has been regulating its workforce under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. A manager asks what happens to the standing orders certified earlier and the conciliation officer appointed earlier now that the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 has come into force. Advise.

Show the solution

Provision: under section 104(1), the commencement notification may specify that the Trade Unions Act, 1926, the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 and the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 stand repealed from a stated date. Remaining provisions stay in force until repealed by like notifications.
Staged repeal: so the first step is to check which provisions of the old Acts have actually been repealed by notification, and from what date. Only those are affected.
Savings: under section 104(2), where a repeal has taken effect, anything done or any action taken under the repealed provisions, including rules, notifications, appointments, orders or directions, is deemed to be done under the corresponding provisions of the Code.
Condition 1: the saving covers the standing orders and the appointment only if the provisions under which they were made have been repealed. If those provisions have not been repealed, the standing orders and the appointment continue under the old Act.
Condition 2: even where the saving applies, it operates only to the extent the earlier action is not contrary to the Code.
Further: section 104(3) applies section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 to the repeal.

Answer: The position depends on whether the provisions under which the standing orders were certified and the conciliation officer was appointed have been repealed by notification. If they have, the earlier standing orders and the earlier appointment are deemed to be made under the corresponding provisions of the Code and continue only to the extent they are not contrary to the Code. If they have not, they continue under the old Act. The company should identify the repealed provisions, review the standing orders and align any inconsistent terms.

Example 2

Ravi is employed by Sunrise Textiles Pvt. Ltd. as a production supervisor. His duties include assigning work to the machine operators, approving their leave, sanctioning overtime and deciding disciplinary action against them. He was dismissed and claims to be a worker under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020. Is he a worker?

Show the solution

Provision: under the definition in section 2, a worker is a person employed in an industry for hire or reward to do manual, unskilled, skilled, technical, operational, clerical or supervisory work. Supervisory work is in the list.
Exclusion: a person employed in a supervisory capacity is excluded if the wages exceed the limit stated in the definition, or if the duties are mainly managerial in nature.
Facts: Ravi is a supervisor. His duties are approving leave, sanctioning overtime and deciding discipline. These are management functions, not routine supervision of work.
Analysis: the question turns on his duties, not his title. His duties are mainly managerial, so the exclusion applies whatever his wages are.
Conclusion: he falls within the exclusion.

Answer: Ravi is not a worker under the Code, because his functions as a supervisor are mainly managerial. He cannot claim worker status on that basis. If his duties were only routine supervision of work, you would then compare his wages with the limit stated in the definition in section 2 before concluding.

Exam tips

Learn the dates and the notification number for commencement. They are easy marks: 21 November 2025 and Notification S.O. 5320(E).
Always name the three Acts that section 104 deals with, and state that repeal is by notification and may be staged.
For worker questions, write inclusions, exclusions and the wage limit, then apply them to the facts in a short table-free list.
Use the provision, analysis, conclusion format in every answer and end with a one-line practical point for the employer.
Do not quote section numbers you are unsure of. Section 1 (commencement) and section 104 (repeal and savings) are safe.

Practice questions from Law of Industrial Relations

Industrial Relations Code 2020: Overview and Definitions in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

CS ExecutiveIndustrial Relations Code, 2020: Overview and Key Definitions

Industrial Relations Code 2020: Overview and Definitions: frequently asked questions

Which laws does the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 deal with?

It deals with the subjects of three laws: the Trade Unions Act, 1926, the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 and the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. Under section 104(1), the Central Government may specify in the commencement notification that these Acts stand repealed from a stated date. Provisions not so repealed remain in force until they are repealed by like notifications.

When did the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 come into force?

The Code comes into force on the date the Central Government notifies. The official text records that this date was 21 November 2025, under Notification S.O. 5320(E). Different dates may be appointed for different provisions.

Who is a worker under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020?

The definition is in section 2. In outline, a worker is a person employed in an industry for hire or reward to do manual, unskilled, skilled, technical, operational, clerical or supervisory work. The definition excludes persons such as apprentices, armed forces members and those in managerial or administrative roles. A person in a supervisory capacity is also excluded if wages exceed the limit stated in the definition or if the duties are mainly managerial. Take the exact wording and figure from the Code.

What happens to actions taken under the old Acts after repeal?

Where a repeal under section 104(1) has taken effect, section 104(2) deems actions taken under the repealed provisions to have been taken under the corresponding provisions of the Code. They remain in force to the extent they are not contrary to the Code. Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 also applies.