Glossary
Social Security Code (SS Code)
One of the four Labour Codes, covering EPF, ESI, gratuity, maternity benefit and gig worker welfare — 14 chapters, 164 sections — source of the social security framework.
The Social Security Code consolidates nine prior laws — including the EPF Act, ESI Act, Payment of Gratuity Act and Maternity Benefit Act — into one framework. It is intended to extend coverage toward gig and platform workers over time.
It repeats the Code on Wages’ wages definition at §2(88), and sets gratuity vesting at §53 (5 years, 1 year pro-rata for FTE). It also introduces an aggregator cess of 1–2% of turnover, capped at 5% of worker payouts, for gig-economy welfare funding under §114(4).
Why it matters now: it is the Code where the EPF and ESI “notified-but-dormant” gap lives. The framework is in force, but the legacy 1952/1948 scheme machinery still governs contribution ceilings.