The Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948 (As Amended): A Critical Analysis Before And After The Code On Social Security, 2020
- IJLLR Journal
- Jul 5
- 1 min read
Roonam Gautam, Ph.D. Scholar, Department of Laws, Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab
ABSTRACT
This article presents a comprehensive critical analysis of India’s Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948 (ESI Act), its institutional embodiment in the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), and the transformative recasting of statutory social insurance within the Code on Social Security, 2020 (CSS 2020). It traces the evolution of the ESI scheme’s coverage, finance, benefits, administration, and adjudication; unpacks conceptual tensions in the definition of “employee” and “wages”; and examines operational issues such as contribution liability, compliance, and enforcement. Against that backdrop, it assesses how CSS 2020 consolidates the ESI Act within a unified framework, expands scheme reach, recognizes new work arrangements, and reorganizes governance. The article also synthesizes leading Supreme Court jurisprudence on ESI coverage, wage components, and constitutional dimensions of social insurance. It argues that while CSS 2020 promises better coherence, portability, and coverage— particularly for unorganized and platform-based workers—effective realization hinges on calibrated rulemaking, digital infrastructure, interstate coordination, actuarial prudence, and principled adjudication. The conclusion proposes a reform agenda centered on clarity of wage definitions, evidence-based exemptions, contributory justice, provider quality, and worker-centric portability, situating ESIC as a backbone of India’s universal social protection architecture.
Keywords: Employees’ State Insurance, ESIC, social insurance, Code on Social Security 2020, employee definition, wages, compliance, Supreme Court of India, contributory schemes, labour law reform.
