Duties of Employer and Employees — Labour Law II Notes

Duties of Employer and Employees

The old Factories Act scattered the employer’s duties across dozens of sections. The OSH Code gathers them into one clear promise at the front of the Code: your workplace must not injure the people who work in it. For the first time the duty is stated as a general principle, not just a list of do’s and don’ts.

What the employer must do, and what the employee must do

Duties of the employer (Section 6, with related duties in ss.7–12). Every employer must:

• provide and maintain a workplace that is free from hazards that cause or are likely to cause injury or occupational disease;

• ensure a hazard-free working environment and safe plant and systems of work;

• provide, free of cost, an annual health examination to notified classes of employees;

• give every employee an appointment letter in the prescribed form;

• ensure the disposal of hazardous and toxic waste, and report accidents and dangerous occurrences;

• not charge the worker for any safety measure, and comply with the Code’s health, safety and welfare standards.

Duties of the employee (Section 13). Every employee must:

• take reasonable care for his own and others’ health and safety;
• not interfere with or misuse anything provided for safety;
• comply with the safety and health requirements, and report to the employer any unsafe or unhealthy situation he becomes aware of.

Section 6, OSH Code 2020 (in brief): “Every employer shall … ensure that the workplace is free from hazards which cause or are likely to cause injury or occupational disease to the employees … [and] provide … a health examination … free of costs …”

In Simple Terms: The employer must make the workplace safe, check workers' health free, and give appointment letters; the worker must use the safety gear, not tamper with it, and report dangers. Safety is a shared duty, but the heavier share is the employer’s.

🧩 WORKED EXAMPLE — who must fix an unsafe machine?

Facts. A guard is missing from a machine; a worker notices but keeps using it, and is injured.

Rule. The employer must provide a hazard-free workplace and safe plant (s.6); the employee must report unsafe situations and not misuse safety devices (s.13).

Apply. The employer breached his duty by leaving the machine unguarded; the worker also breached his duty to report the danger.

Conclusion. Primary responsibility is the employer’s, but the employee’s duty to report is engaged too — both duties are live.

flowchart LR
    ROOT["Duties (OSH Code)"]:::root
    ROOT --> ER["Employer (ss.6-13): hazard-free workplace, free health check, appointment letter, safe plant"]:::leaf
    ROOT --> EE["Employee (s.13): reasonable care, don't misuse safety devices, report dangers"]:::leaf
    classDef root fill:#FFF8DC,stroke:#000,stroke-width:1px,color:#000;
    classDef leaf fill:#E6F3FF,stroke:#1E3A8A,color:#000;
    linkStyle default stroke:#888,stroke-width:1px;

Case Laws

• M.C. Mehta v Union of India (1987) — the enterprise bears an absolute, non-delegable duty of workplace safety.

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