# Supreme Court retains 1978 industry test for pending labour disputes 2026-08-25T16:26:57+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet The Supreme Court's nine-judge Constitution Bench ruled 6:3 that pending labour disputes under the Industrial Disputes Act will continue to be decided using the broad 1978 definition of 'industry' from the Bangalore Water Supply case. The majority, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, refined the Triple Test to require courts to check if an organisation's goods or services have a 'discernible commercial character', but said profit motive is still not necessary. The court left the definition under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 open, saying it must be interpreted independently. Dissenting judges including Justice B.V. Nagarathna argued the 1978 ruling should remain unchanged for pending cases. Lawyers say the verdict could trigger fresh litigation as courts begin interpreting the new Code's definition, especially for non-profit, educational and welfare institutions. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The ruling does not settle the meaning of 'industry' under the 2020 Code, which explicitly excludes charitable, social and philanthropic institutions and sovereign government functions. Until a case reaches the Supreme Court under the new Code, workers in hospitals, schools and charities remain in legal uncertainty about their labour rights. The Industrial Relations Code, passed by Parliament in 2020, has not yet been fully notified, so the old Act still governs most disputes. Employers and unions will now watch which organisation's activities first get tested against the new definition, likely in a high court reference. ## Coverage - livemint.com Straight explainer style with multiple lawyer quotes and balanced treatment of majority and dissent This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Bangalore Water Supply case, Industrial Relations Code 2020, Justice B.V. Nagarathna, Justice Surya Kant, Supreme Court Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/supreme-court-retains-1978-industry-test-for-pending-labour-disputes/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/supreme-court-retains-1978-industry-test-for-pending-labour-disputes/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/