Enacted 2020Labour & Employment LawsBrief

The Industrial Relations Code, 2020

Consolidates the Trade Unions Act, the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, and the Industrial Disputes Act into a single code.

In one line

What this Act says

Merges the Trade Unions, Standing Orders and Industrial Disputes Acts â€” covers trade unions, retrenchment, layoffs, strikes and dispute resolution.

Penalties

3 headline offences

Illegal strike or lock-out
Â§86
Worker: fine â‚¹1,000 â€“ â‚¹10,000 and/or imprisonment up to 1 month; Employer: fine â‚¹50,000 â€“ â‚¹10 lakh and/or imprisonment up to 1 month.
Retrenchment / lay-off / closure without permission (large units)
Â§86(8)
Fine â‚¹1 lakh â€“ â‚¹10 lakh and continuing daily fine until compliance.
Failure to make payment due under settlement / award
Â§86(5)
Fine â‚¹50,000 â€“ â‚¹2 lakh; on repeat â€” imprisonment up to 3 months and/or fine up to â‚¹5 lakh.

Headline offences only — not exhaustive. For the full text and every section, open the source PDF or the official link below.

Key Sections & Penalties

Showing 5 of 7

Section	Type	Provision	Applicability	Details / Penalty
§14	structural	Registration of Trade Union	-	Administrative / Structural
§28	structural	Recognition of negotiating union	-	Administrative / Structural
§62	structural	Strikes and lock-outs	-	Administrative / Structural
§77	structural	Retrenchment of workmen	-	Administrative / Structural
§86	criminal	Illegal strike or lock-out	-	Worker: fine ₹1,000 – ₹10,000 and/or imprisonment up to 1 month; Employer: fine ₹50,000 – ₹10 lakh and/or imprisonment up to 1 month high RISK

Maximum punishments as prescribed by the Act. Actual sentencing depends on facts, prior convictions and judicial discretion.

Sources

We always show you the local source PDF and at least one verifiable online reference, so you can check anything we say.

Source PDF

Industrial Relations Code, 2020.pdf

Full text · opens in new tab

Reference

PRS India

prsindia.org · opens in new tab

About this Act