‘Anti-labour, pro-crony’ codes pose threat to job security: Kharge

NEW DELHI: The joint opposition Wednesday protested at the Parliament entrance against new labour codes and demanded their scrapping, with Congress president and leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge targeting the Modi govt as “anti-labour, anti-worker, pro-cronies”. Kharge said the codes pose a “threat to job security” as the layoff threshold without govt approval has been raised from 100 to 300 workers. He said the new provisions will end permanent jobs as companies will hire workers on short-term contracts to avoid long-term benefits for workers. He said states can allow 12-hour shifts through flexible scheduling, even though eight-hour shifts are retained on paper. “Workers must wait 60 days before striking, plus a 14-day cooling-off period. This prevents quick ac