Union Labour and Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday, 15 July 2026, welcomed delegates from BRICS nations to the 12th BRICS Labour and Employment Ministers' Meeting hosted in Hyderabad, marking a significant multilateral engagement on employment and labour cooperation among emerging economies.

Context

The meeting brought together labour and employment ministers from the BRICS grouping — an intergovernmental bloc comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, formed in 2009 to foster economic and political cooperation among major emerging markets. Hyderabad, the capital of Telangana, served as the venue, leveraging its established convention infrastructure and strong air connectivity to host senior international delegates.

Minister Mandaviya extended what he described as 'the warmth of India's hospitality' to the assembled ministers and delegates, signalling India's intent to position itself as a constructive and welcoming host within the BRICS framework.

Policy Backdrop

India has a long-standing tradition of using BRICS ministerial platforms to advance discussions on employment formalisation, skilling, and social protection. The country previously hosted the BRICS Labour and Employment Ministers' Meeting in 2016 during an earlier presidency cycle, where the focus centred on job creation and social security frameworks.

Successive BRICS labour meetings have addressed pressing themes including post-pandemic labour market recovery and the growing impact of digitalisation and automation on jobs across member economies. The grouping's recent membership expansion has further broadened the range of national labour models and policy perspectives represented at such forums, making consensus-building both more complex and more consequential.

Stakeholders and Impact

The meeting holds direct relevance for workers across BRICS economies, whose collective labour forces represent a substantial share of the global workforce. Labour ministries from member nations use these platforms to exchange best practices on social security portability, gig economy regulation, and skills recognition frameworks that can ease cross-border employment.

For India specifically, the hosting role provides an opportunity to showcase domestic labour reforms and position Indian policy models — particularly in areas of formalisation and digital labour market infrastructure — as reference points for other emerging economies. Hyderabad's own profile as a technology and services hub lends a fitting backdrop to discussions on the future of work.

What's Next

Attention will now turn to the final declaration expected to emerge from the 12th ministerial meeting, which could include joint commitments on employment generation, social protection floors, and digital skilling. Any working groups constituted at this meeting are likely to report their findings ahead of the next BRICS Leaders' Summit.

Outcomes from this labour ministers' forum may also feed into India's broader multilateral legacy on employment issues, reinforcing positions articulated during previous international engagements. The meeting underscores India's continued commitment to shaping the global labour policy agenda through multilateral platforms.