Haryana Overhauls Labour Regime with New Amendments to Factories and Shops Laws

What Has Changed: Key Provisions of the Amendments

The Cabinet of the Haryana government has formally approved two major ordinances in early November 2025: the Factories (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025 and the Haryana Shops & Commercial Establishments (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025.

< amendments to the laws encompass several significant shifts:

• Under the Shops & Commercial Establishments amendment, maximum daily working hours for employees have been extended from 9 to 10 hours; overtime ceiling increased to 156 hours per quarter from 50 hours; rest interval provisions changed to require rest after 6 hours instead of 5.
• The Factories amendment aims to modernise regulatory requirements for industrial manufacturing units—streamlining registration, inspections and aligning with national labour-code implementation. Among the stated goals are promoting ease of doing business while retaining safety, gender equality and worker welfare standards.
• The state amendments appear timed to dovetail with the central government’s notification of the four Labour Codes (Wages, Industrial Relations, Social Security & Occupational Safety, Health & Working Conditions) which came into effect on 21 November 2025.

As a result, employers and employees across both the organised and informal sectors in Haryana might now face a recalibrated regulatory landscape—from working‐hour norms, overtime accounting, to worker registration, social security contributions and compliance thresholds.

Implications for Workers: Mixed Signals on Welfare and Flexibility

From a worker welfare standpoint, the amendments carry both potential benefits and concerns. On the positive side:

Labour-union leaders in Haryana welcome the implementation of the central codes, emphasising features that strengthen minimum wages, social-security coverage, mandatory bank salary payments and protections for informal workers. In a public meeting in Hisar, a trade-union official emphasised that the new labour codes will shield workers from exploitation.

These protections include widened definitions of “wages” (which now must include basic pay, dearness allowance and retaining allowance), compulsory social-security registration even for hazardous sites with one worker, and formalisation of gig and informal work under the new national codes.

On the flip side, union representatives caution that the increase to 10-hour workdays and inflated overtime ceilings may risk worker fatigue, potentially dilute rest rhythms and increase exposure to industrial accidents—especially in mass‐manufacturing units in Haryana’s industrial corridors. They warn that unless worker welfare infrastructure (rest rooms, periodic medical check-ups, shift-rotations) is strengthened concurrently, the extended hours could become de facto standard rather than exception.

For workers, clarity around how the new wages definition and overtime will translate to take-home pay is essential. Analysts point out that restructuring of salary components under the national code might reduce disposable income if basic salary thresholds are raised and more of the CTC is captured as “wages”, thereby increasing employer contributions (such as provident fund) and reducing immediate liquidity for workers.

Impacts on Businesses and Industry: Ease vs. Oversight

For industrial units and shops across Haryana—ranging from large factories in Gurugram and Faridabad to small retail establishments in Rohtak and Karnal—the amendments seek to reduce regulatory fragmentation. By aligning state law to the national codes and providing clearer frameworks for registration, inspections and compliance, the government aims to strengthen manufacturing competitiveness and investment attractiveness.

The extension of working hours and increased overtime limit may allow factories greater flexibility in operations—especially shift‐based production lines in automotive, electronics and consumer goods. Retail establishments and commercial service outlets may also adjust staffing patterns and hours to meet evolving consumer demand, particularly in NCR edge zones of Haryana.

However, business associations note that while compliance burdens may reduce on paper, revision of definitions (e.g., wages, overtime, rest intervals) will require financial modelling, adjustment of HR policies, payroll systems and worker‐contractual commitments. Smaller firms, especially in retail, may struggle with upgrades. Some fear that extended working hours without appropriate welfare enhancements could lead to labour disputes or reputational risks.

State vs Centre: Navigating Shared Policy Space

The timing of Haryana’s amendments is noteworthy. With the central government’s four labour codes coming into force on 21 November 2025, Haryana’s moves reflect an effort to synchronise state law with the centre’s trajectory, while maintaining local flexibility.

Legal experts observe that India’s federal system allows states to retain regulatory authority over shops, factories and commercial establishments—even as national codes set broad frameworks. Haryana’s amended ordinances signal that states will actively shape how the new labour regime applies on the ground, balancing worker welfare, business competitiveness and regional labour market realities.

The challenge for policymakers will be in managing the transition: ensuring that regulatory clarity is matched by field-level capacity in inspectorate, labour-welfare departments and local labour courts — otherwise, the reforms may remain in statute but falter in practise.

Workers in Haryana’s Industrial Hubs: Live Example at the Microscale

In the national capital region (NCR) belt of Haryana – specifically in Gurugram, Kundli-Manesar, Bawal, Sonipat and Faridabad – the dual pressures of cooling external demand and rising automation have already prompted firms to optimise shift patterns, workforce costs and productivity. The labour amendments may allow firms more flexible shift hours, but they also raise questions about how expanded hours will affect workforce morale, fatigue, safety and attrition rates.

In one manufacturing cluster near Manesar, a plant manager told reporters that “we will now revise our shift roster to ten-hour blocks instead of two six-hour shifts. It gives us fewer changeovers, smoother machine uptime, and helps our cost structure – but we must also look at welfare touchpoints like staggered lunches, rest-rooms, check-ups and rotation.” Meanwhile, a workforce representative flagged concerns: “Ten hours is long, especially when the task is repetitive; we hope the company maintains promised breaks, ensures overtime is voluntary and keeps us safe.”

Compliance, Enforcement and the Ground Reality

For the reforms to succeed, enforcement mechanisms must adapt. Trade unions underscore the need for stronger labour-department outreach, digital registration portals, worker grievance cells and accessible local inspectorates. They caution that workers in informal supply-chains or sub-contracted operations – a large portion in Haryana’s manufacturing sector – often lack clarity on rights, union representation or access to welfare schemes.

In response, the Haryana Labour Department has reportedly set up special cell to assist firms with transition under the amended laws, offering helpline numbers and compliance checklists. Practical details such as how overtime will be paid, how workers in small shops will be covered, and how existing employment contracts will be regularised remain to be clarified in guidelines to follow the ordinances.

Broader Significance: A Test Case for India’s Labour Reform Landscape

Haryana’s amendment push is more than a state-level exercise—it functions as a microcosm of how India’s labour-policy transformation is unfolding. With the national codes now effective, state enactments like these determine how those codes operate in practice, what local flexibilities are introduced, how workers adapt and how businesses seize opportunity.

If Haryana successfully manages the transition—minimising disruption, sustaining worker welfare, enabling business growth—it could set a blueprint for other states balancing reform and protection. Conversely, if the transition falters—through weak enforcement, retrograde worker outcomes or business push-back—it could become a cautionary tale of reform without delivery.

Way Forward: What Stakeholders Should Focus On

For workers: It is critical that they understand the new wage definitions, overtime rules, shift schedules, and welfare entitlements. Workers should seek updated contracts, demand clarity on benefits and raise questions about rest intervals, medical check-ups and shift rotations under the new regime.

For businesses: Firms will need to audit payroll structures, compliance frameworks, HR policies, workforce contracts and overtime liability. It makes sense to engage with labour-law advisors, train supervisors in new rules and communicate transparently with workers about changes.

For policymakers: The task ahead involves rolling out state-level guidelines, training inspectors, building digital registries, informing small businesses and ensuring a smooth transition so that the dual goals of ease of doing business and worker welfare are not opposed but aligned.

Conclusion: Reform is Here, But Delivery Will Determine Outcome

The 2025 amendments to Haryana’s labour laws mark a significant pivot: a regulatory framework updated for the age of global manufacturing, digital supply-chains and an evolving workforce. But the significance of legal reform lies not in ink-on-paper, but in real outcomes. For workers in Haryana’s factories and shops, the next months will determine whether this is a period of improved rights and opportunities, or one of longer hours, marginal gains and rising uncertainties.

In a state long known for industrial ambition and workforce challenges, the success of these reforms will depend not just on what the laws say, but on how they are implemented—how many workers feel safer, better paid, and more secure, and how many businesses deliver on the promise of modernisation while preserving human dignity. In that sense, Haryana is stepping into a new chapter; whether this chapter becomes a blueprint or a cautionary tale depends on all the actors involved.