SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth | SDG 1: No Poverty | SDG 5: Gender Equality | SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
Ministry of Labour & Employment (MoLE) | Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) | Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) | International Labour Organization (ILO)
The Ministry of Labour & Employment’s Year End Review 2025 highlights a landmark year for the formalization and protection of India’s workforce, anchored by the implementation of the Four Labour Codes and the launch of the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana (PMVBRY). This year saw India achieving a historic surge in social protection coverage, which rose from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025, positioning the country as a global leader in providing citizen security.
Key structural and digital milestones include:
PMVBRY Implementation: Launched with an outlay of ₹99,446 crore, the scheme aims to incentivize the creation of over 3.5 crore jobs, with 20.7 lakh first-time employees already registered.
EPFO Digital Leap: Introduction of a Centralized Pension Payment System (CPPS) allowing pensioners to access funds from any bank branch nationwide, alongside the auto-settlement of withdrawals up to ₹5 lakh.
National Policy Framework: Release of the draft National Labour & Employment Policy—Shram Shakti Niti 2025, which envisions a technology-led “Labour Stack” integrating EPFO, ESIC, and e-Shram into an interoperable ecosystem.
Women’s Workforce Integration: Policy mandates now permit women to work in all sectors, including night shifts, ensuring safety measures and consent are prioritized to bridge the gender participation gap.
International Recognition: India received the prestigious ISSA Award 2025 for “Outstanding Achievement in Social Security” and signed an MoU with the ILO to advance international reference classification for labour mobility.
Migrant Worker Welfare: Expanded definition of migrant workers under the new codes now includes those migrating on their own, providing them with lump-sum travel allowances and portable social security benefits.
What is the Centralized Pension Payment System (CPPS)? It is a modern digital framework launched by the EPFO that replaces the legacy branch-specific pension disbursement model. By centralizing the verification and payment process, it allows over 77 lakh EPS pensioners to receive their monthly payments seamlessly from any bank, any branch, anywhere in India, eliminating the need to visit specific nodal bank offices for life certificate submissions or fund transfers.
Policy Relevance & Future Roadmap
The 2025 review signals a decisive transition from a “regulatory-heavy” to a “facilitation-first” governance model. The consolidation of 9,000 instructions into a streamlined framework and the shift of inspectors to “Inspector-cum-Facilitators” drastically reduces the compliance burden for MSMEs, fostering an environment for sustainable industrial growth.
Future Roadmap (2026–2030):
Universal Social Security: The Ministry aims to extend the “Labour Stack” to cover 100% of the unorganised workforce by 2030, ensuring portable benefits for gig, platform, and migrant workers through AI-driven registries.
Skill-to-Work Integration: Implementation of the “One Nation, One Labour ID” system to link e-Shram with the National Career Service (NCS) and skill databases, facilitating real-time job matching and targeted upskilling.
Global Mobility Standards: Collaborating with the ILO to establish a global “Skill Mapping and Certification” framework, enabling Indian workers to transition seamlessly into international labor markets with recognized credentials.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: How will the implementation of the ‘Labour Stack’ under Shram Shakti Niti 2025 leverage real-time payroll data from EPFO to automate the delivery of ‘last-mile’ welfare benefits to unorganised and migrant workers?
Follow the full news here: Year End Review 2025 – Ministry of Labour & Employment