The long shifts at the heart of Surat's embroidery dispute are linked to a 2025 change in Gujarat's factory law. The Gujarat Assembly passed the Factories (Gujarat Amendment) Bill in September 2025, allowing longer working days in factories. Unions in Surat now point to it as the reason 12-hour shifts have become harder to challenge, while employers say longer shifts suit the way the industry runs.
What the law allows
- Longer days: daily working hours in factories can be extended from 9 to as many as 12 hours, subject to conditions.
- Same weekly limit: the 48-hour cap on total working hours in a week stays in place.
- Days off in return: the state labour minister, Balvantsinh Rajput, said a worker who completes 48 hours in four 12-hour shifts would get paid leave for the remaining three days of the week.
- Night shifts for women: women can work between 7 pm and 6 am if employers put adequate safety measures in place.
- Temporary: the government described the provisions as temporary and subject to review, and said they could be withdrawn if norms are violated.
What it does not change
The law does not remove the weekly hours limit, and it does not do away with weekly rest. A 12-hour day, six or seven days a week, would go well beyond the 48-hour cap. That gap is the core of the workers' complaint in Surat: they say many units run 12-hour shifts without a weekly off.
On 29 September 2026, Surat's Deputy Labour Commissioner directed the Textile Embroidery Job Work Association of Surat (TEJAS) and the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce to make sure units follow the applicable central and state labour laws.
This article explains the law in general terms and is not legal advice. Unit owners should check the exact rules for their factory registration with the Labour Department or a labour law adviser.