CPM labour arm Citu has demanded that the government repeal four newly passed labour laws, at a time farmers are protesting against new farm laws and have called for their scrapping.

Citu will organise a protest at work sites on Wednesday to demand that the Code on Wages, Code on Industrial Relations, Code on Social Security and the Code on Occupational Safety be repealed.

Citu general secretary A.R. Sindhu described the labour laws as draconian.

“We have extended our support to the farmers on their demand to repeal the farm laws. We are also demanding the repeal of the four labour laws,” she said.

Citu will hold another round of protest on January 8 in front of the office of district magistrates.

Sindhu demanded the expansion of employment guarantee, universal free health, social security for all, and enhanced minimum wage. She said the labour codes would help corporates and marginalise workers.

The Industrial Relations Code has a provision to allow easy hire-and-fire, while there is no clear-cut condition for social security funds in the codes.