Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister,  in his inaugural address at the Indian Labour Conference held at New Delhi on 23rd November 2010 is reported to have stated as follows:

“We have enacted several progressive labour laws since independence and some even before that. But it appears that  not all these laws have had the intended good effects that we would like to see on the ground. We need to consider the possible role of some of our labour laws in contributing to rigidity in the labour market which hurt the growth of employment on a large-scale. Is it possible that our best intentions for labour are not actually met by laws that sound progressive on paper but end up hurting the very workers they are meant to protect? …………….If we want to draw more and more workers in to the organised sector where they can claim the benefits that currently cover such a very small proportion of our labour force, we do need to rethink the nature of the laws that enforce such benefits?”

Is the above speech a direction to reform the labour laws in support of the employer instead of the employees? It seems so, in view of the neo-liberal policies being implemented by the Government of India. You can give your opinion.