Employment & Labour Law
Employment and labour practice concerns the relationship between employers and those who work for them, including engagement, terms of service, workplace conduct, termination and collective relations. Sagar & Sagar Law Offices advises on employment documentation and policies, statutory compliance under central and state labour legislation, obligations relating to workplace harassment, and the conduct of disciplinary and separation processes, and represents parties in industrial disputes and employment proceedings before labour authorities, tribunals and courts. Work covers advisory, transactional and contentious matters.
Overview
Indian labour regulation is layered. Central legislation establishes the framework for wages, industrial relations, social security and workplace conditions; state legislation and rules govern establishments, working hours and registration; and the protections available to a given individual depend substantially on whether that individual falls within the statutory definition of a workman, or of an employee, for the purpose of the provision concerned. Consolidation of central labour legislation into codes has been undertaken, with commencement and rulemaking proceeding at both central and state level.
The practice at Sagar & Sagar Law Offices addresses this framework as it applies day to day. Work includes drafting and review of employment documentation and internal policies, compliance advice across applicable central and state requirements, advice on restructuring and separation, conduct of workplace investigations, and representation in disputes with individual employees, groups of employees and unions. Where employment issues arise in a transaction, work is conducted with the firm's Corporate practice.
Scope of work
Employment documentation and policies
Documents establishing and governing the employment relationship.
- Drafting and review of employment contracts and appointment letters
- Drafting of consultant, retainer and independent contractor agreements
- Advice on classification of engagement and on the risks of misclassification
- Drafting of confidentiality, invention assignment and intellectual property provisions
- Advice on restrictive covenants, including non-solicitation and non-compete provisions, and on their enforceability
- Drafting of garden leave, notice and transition provisions
- Employee handbooks, codes of conduct and internal policies
- Advice on remote and hybrid working arrangements and their documentation
- Advice on secondment, deputation and group employment arrangements
- Executive service agreements and separation agreements
Statutory compliance
Obligations arising under central and state labour legislation.
- Advice on registration and licensing requirements applicable to establishments
- Advice on wages, minimum wages, payment obligations and permissible deductions
- Advice on working hours, leave, holidays and overtime requirements
- Advice on bonus and gratuity obligations
- Advice on provident fund and employees' state insurance obligations, including in respect of international workers
- Advice on maternity benefit obligations and on associated workplace requirements
- Advice on obligations concerning contract labour and on principal employer liability
- Advice on obligations applicable to gig and platform-based work
- Advice on obligations under occupational safety and working conditions requirements
- Compliance audits and remediation of historical non-compliance
- Advice on the consolidation of central labour legislation and on transition to the codes
- Representation in inspections and proceedings before labour authorities
Workplace harassment and conduct
Obligations concerning conduct within the workplace.
- Advice on obligations under legislation concerning sexual harassment of women at workplace
- Constitution of internal committees and advice on their composition
- Drafting of policies and training material on workplace harassment
- Advice on the conduct of inquiries and on procedural requirements
- Acting as or advising external members and presiding officers, as appropriate
- Advice on inquiry findings, recommendations and their implementation
- Advice on appeals from inquiry findings
- Advice on annual reporting and filing obligations
- Advice on complaints falling outside that framework, including under general disciplinary policy
- Advice on prevention of discrimination and on equal opportunity obligations
Disciplinary process, investigation and termination
Processes leading to separation or sanction.
- Advice on standards of conduct and on grounds for disciplinary action
- Drafting of charge sheets and show cause notices
- Advice on the conduct of domestic inquiries and on principles of natural justice
- Conduct of workplace investigations into misconduct, fraud and policy breach
- Advice on suspension pending inquiry
- Advice on proportionality of punishment and on documentation of decisions
- Advice on termination for cause and on termination on notice
- Advice on retrenchment, including notice, compensation and approval requirements where applicable
- Advice on closure of establishments and on the requirements attaching to it
- Negotiation and documentation of separation and settlement arrangements
- Defence of claims arising from termination
Industrial relations and collective matters
Relations with unions and groups of employees.
- Advice on recognition of trade unions and on negotiation frameworks
- Advice on and negotiation of settlements and collective agreements
- Advice on strikes, lock-outs and other industrial action
- Advice on unfair labour practice allegations
- Conciliation proceedings before labour authorities
- Representation before Labour Courts and Industrial Tribunals
- Advice on standing orders and on their certification and modification
- Advice on management of workforce reduction in unionised establishments
Employment aspects of transactions and restructuring
Employment issues arising from corporate activity.
- Employment due diligence in acquisitions and investments
- Advice on transfer of employees on transfer of an undertaking
- Advice on continuity of service, benefits and accrued entitlements
- Advice on harmonisation of terms following acquisition
- Advice on employment aspects of outsourcing arrangements
- Advice on workforce restructuring, redundancy and reorganisation
- Advice on employment obligations in insolvency and on treatment of workmen's dues
- Advice on employment aspects of business closure and site consolidation
Employee benefits and incentives
Compensation arrangements beyond salary.
- Advice on structuring of employee stock option and share-based incentive plans
- Advice on the regulatory framework applicable to share-based plans in listed and unlisted companies
- Drafting of plan documentation, grant letters and trust arrangements where used
- Advice on treatment of incentives on separation and on change of control
- Advice on deferred compensation and retention arrangements
- Advice on benefits for internationally mobile employees
Individual employment disputes
Contentious matters between employer and individual.
- Claims concerning wrongful and illegal termination
- Claims concerning wages, benefits and terminal dues
- Proceedings concerning gratuity and provident fund entitlements
- Disputes concerning enforcement of restrictive covenants
- Proceedings arising from harassment complaints and inquiry findings
- Disputes concerning confidential information and misuse of employer property
- Writ proceedings in employment matters, where available
- Defence of employers in employment claims
Forums and authorities
- Labour Courts and Industrial Tribunals
- Conciliation officers and labour authorities under applicable legislation
- Controlling and appellate authorities under gratuity legislation
- Employees' Provident Fund Organisation and authorities under provident fund legislation
- Employees' State Insurance Corporation authorities
- Internal committees and local committees constituted under harassment legislation
- Inspectors and authorities under state shops and establishments legislation
- Civil Courts and Commercial Courts, in contractual employment disputes
- High Courts, in writ and appellate jurisdiction
- Supreme Court of India
Who we act for
- Companies and establishments across sectors
- Boards, human resources functions and in-house counsel
- Multinational employers operating in India
- Startups establishing employment frameworks
- Platform and aggregator businesses
- Employers in unionised establishments
- Internal committees constituted under harassment legislation
- Senior executives in respect of their engagement and separation
- Parties to transactions with employment implications
How we approach this work
Coverage determined before advice is given.
Whether an individual is a workman, an employee or a contractor for the purpose of a given provision determines what protection applies. That question is settled first.
Process documented as it is conducted.
Disciplinary and separation decisions are tested on the record made at the time. Notices, inquiry records and decisions are prepared on the footing that they will be produced in evidence.
Central and state requirements addressed together.
Establishments are subject to both. Advice identifies the applicable state framework alongside central obligations rather than treating either in isolation.
Sensitivity in investigations.
Workplace investigations involve individuals' reputations and employment. They are conducted with attention to confidentiality, fairness and the position of all parties involved.
Frequently asked questions
- Are non-compete clauses enforceable in India after employment ends?
- Indian contract law treats agreements in restraint of trade as void, subject to the exception provided in the statute, and post-employment restrictions on competing have generally not been enforced by Indian courts. Restrictions operating during employment, and obligations protecting confidential information and restraining solicitation, stand on a different footing and have been enforced in appropriate cases.
- Who is a workman and why does it matter?
- Industrial relations legislation applies specified protections to persons falling within the statutory definition of a workman, which turns on the nature of the duties performed rather than on designation, and excludes persons employed mainly in a managerial or administrative capacity. Whether an individual is a workman determines the availability of protections relating to termination, retrenchment and access to industrial adjudication.
- What is required before terminating an employee in India?
- Requirements depend on whether the individual falls within statutory protection, on the applicable state legislation, on the size and nature of the establishment, and on the terms of the contract. Where statutory protection applies, notice, compensation and in some cases prior permission may be required, and misconduct-based termination ordinarily requires a disciplinary process conducted in accordance with principles of natural justice.
- What obligations does an employer have under the POSH framework?
- Legislation concerning sexual harassment of women at workplace requires employers to constitute an internal committee in the manner prescribed, to formulate and publicise a policy, to organise awareness and training, to conduct inquiries in accordance with the procedure specified, to act upon recommendations, and to file annual reports. Obligations apply irrespective of the sector in which the employer operates.
- Who must be on an internal committee?
- The legislation prescribes the composition of the internal committee, including a presiding officer who is a woman employed at a senior level, members from among employees, and a member drawn from a non-governmental organisation or association committed to the cause of women or familiar with issues relating to sexual harassment. Requirements as to the number of members and the proportion of women are set out in the statute.
- Are the labour codes in force?
- Central labour legislation has been consolidated into codes covering wages, industrial relations, social security, and occupational safety and working conditions. Implementation involves both commencement and the framing of rules by the central and state governments, and the position has evolved. Employers should verify the commencement and rule position applicable to their establishments and to the states in which they operate.
- What are an employer's obligations to gig and platform workers?
- Social security legislation contemplates coverage for gig and platform workers, including through schemes funded in part by contributions from aggregators, with the framework depending on notification and rulemaking. Separately, classification of platform-based engagement remains significant, since misclassification may attract obligations applicable to employment.
- What happens to employees when a business is transferred?
- Where an undertaking is transferred, employment legislation provides for the position of workmen, including in relation to continuity of service, terms of employment and compensation, subject to the conditions specified. In practice, treatment depends on the transaction structure, since a share acquisition leaves employment relationships undisturbed while a business transfer requires the position of each employee to be addressed.
Related practice areas
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