The Uttar Pradesh government has approved the formation of a new body—Uttar Pradesh Outsourcing Services Corporation (UPCOS)—under the Companies Act. This initiative, proposed by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, is aimed at transforming the recruitment, working conditions, and rights of outsourced employees across the state.
The new corporation will play a pivotal role in streamlining outsourcing practices, ensuring transparency, accountability, and legal compliance. Most significantly, it will strictly adhere to reservation norms for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC), Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), women, persons with disabilities, and ex-servicemen in all its hiring processes.
In a progressive move, CM Yogi also emphasized the inclusion of widowed, divorced, and abandoned women, who will be given special priority in recruitment.
Ensuring Dignity, Security, and Justice for Workers
Chief Minister Yogi stated that the primary objective of UPCOS is to protect the labour rights, wages, and social security of lakhs of outsourced employees working in various departments across Uttar Pradesh. He added that the new system will instill confidence and stability among workers and bring transparency to administrative systems.
According to the government’s official release, UPCOS will have a Board of Directors headed by the Chief Secretary and a Director General to manage the corporation. Committees will be formed at division and district levels to supervise the implementation.
Transparent Hiring via GeM Portal
All hiring through UPCOS will be done using the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal. Agencies will be selected for a minimum of three years, and existing employees will not face any disruption. In fact, the selection process will offer experience-based weightage to those currently serving.
CM Yogi pointed out that the current outsourcing system lacks uniformity, leading to frequent complaints such as delayed salaries, unlawful deductions, and non-payment of EPF/ESI benefits. The new framework is designed to eliminate exploitation, ensure that all dues are deposited on time, and that employees receive direct salary credit to their bank accounts by the 5th of every month.
In addition, workers will receive all legally entitled benefits from EPF, ESI, and banking systems.
Regulatory Body with Power to Act
UPCOS will function as a regulatory body, monitoring the operations of outsourcing agencies. Any agency violating rules will face penalties, blacklisting, or legal action. CM Yogi has directed that outsourcing must not be used for regular posts, reinforcing the integrity of the public employment system.
Employment Security Assured
In another major announcement, the Chief Minister ensured that no employee will be dismissed arbitrarily. Once selected, no one can be relieved from duty without a formal recommendation from the competent authority of the concerned department.
Yogi reiterated his government’s commitment to employee dignity, security, and social justice, adding that UPCOS will mark the beginning of a new era of transparency and accountability in governance.
Benefits for Lakhs of Workers
This reform will benefit lakhs of outsourced employees in the state, offering them job stability, regular income, and social protections they have long been denied. It is also expected to enhance the efficiency and credibility of the state’s administrative system, aligning employment practices with modern standards of labour rights and justice.
With UPCOS, Uttar Pradesh is setting a precedent that could serve as a model for labour reform and employee welfare in other Indian states.
