Labour reforms are meant for welfare of common man: Minister

The NDA Government on Thursday defended the labour reforms initiated by it, saying they are only meant for welfare of common people, and asked trade unions to come up with good suggestions to improve workforce.

Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said the Government would take labour force into confidence while dealing with workmen-related issues. "I would stand by our trade unions. You give us good suggestions. Whatever decisions we take, we will take tri- partite decisions. We will take labour into confidence. I would like to request labour today - don't pay heed to misinformation, wrong information. The reforms that are happening, those reforms are not intended to do wrong," he said in Hyderabad.

"Reforms are for good and we would like to carry out reforms for common man. We are not going to carry out reforms only for a few people. But it takes some to see that (benefits). We willdefinitely give employability," he said.
Dattatreya, who holds independent charge of the Labour Ministry, was speaking at a round-table on 'Good Governance' organised by the Employee State Insurance Corporation (ESIC). Observing that ordinances being issued by Government in coal and insurance sectors are in the country's interest, he said this route was taken to push reforms as the Opposition did not facilitate their passage in Parliament. The issuance of ordinances shows the decisiveness of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said.
The Prime Minister has demonstrated his bold and decisive nature many times in the last six months. The most recent being yesterday's approval by Union Cabinet to promulgate ordinances related to coal and insurance sectors. The bungling and inaction of the last 10 years in these two sectors of the economy are well-known, he stated. Noting that there would be substantial shortage of manpower in the world by 2022, Dattatreya said India would, however, have a youthful population in the age group of 19-25 in abundance. Countries like Australia and Germany need a skilled manpower like AC repairers and drivers,the Minister said, adding the Government is laying emphasis on skill development in a big way to enhance employability.
He said after coming to power six months ago, the Modi Government has taken initiatives like 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan', Jan Dhan Yojana besides focusing on welfare of workmen in the unorganised sector and skill development of people.