Labour is pledging to eradicate in-work poverty, cut the working week and introduce the biggest extension of workers' rights in history.
The party's manifesto sets out a series of employment measures it says will transform workers' pay, conditions and rights.
The headline promises include the "rapid" introduction of a real living wage of at least £10 an hour for workers aged 16 or over, repeal of "anti-trade union" legislation, cutting the working week to 32 hours within a decade, with no loss of pay, four new bank holidays, and banning zero hours contracts.
The measures will be enforced by a new Ministry of Employment Rights, which Labour said will give workers a voice at the Cabinet table.
Collective bargaining will also be rolled out across the economy, bringing workers and employers together to agree legal minimum standards on pay and hours.
Workers will be given full employment rights from the first day in a job, a single status of "worker" will be created to end "bogus" self-employment, while workers will be given extra protection against unfair dismissal.
The party said it will help people balance work and family life by requiring breaks during shifts to be paid, giving everyone the right to flexible working, extending statutory maternity pay from nine to 12 months and doubling paternity leave to four weeks.
Employers will be required to draw up plans to eradicate the gender pay gap or face fines and make sure workplaces are free of harassment.
The manifesto said: "Under the Tories, pay has stagnated while insecurity and inequality are rising. Work no longer guarantees a way out of poverty.
"Labour will eradicate in-work poverty in our first term by tackling the structural causes of poverty and inequality."
Unions warmly welcomed the employment pledges, saying they would change the lives of millions of people for the better.
Tim Roache, general secretary of the GMB, said: "We need real change, not tinkering around the edges of a system that was built by millionaires, in the interests of millionaires.
"Labour's manifesto shows how different things could be – the very richest in society paying their fair share to fund services we all rely on and build an economy that works for everyone.
"There's a real choice at this election, this manifesto would change the lives of millions of people for the better."
Unite general secretary Len McCluskey said: "This is a fantastic offer from Labour to the electorate.
"When Labour wins, nurses win, teachers win, manufacturing workers win, car workers win, young people win and pensioners win."
Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: "This is a powerful package to rebuild the country and help millions whose lives have been ravaged by nine years of austerity.
"It commits to restoring the funding snatched from public services by the Tories' cold-hearted economic policies and gives dedicated public servants the wage rises they've been denied for so long."
Manuel Cortes, leader of the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association, said: "Our Labour Party is putting in front of the British people the most ambitious plan to create a fairer country since 1945.
"We will be halting the march of Tory economics which, for far too long, has seen a select few at the top prosper at the expense of millions of our fellow citizens."
Tom Hadley, director of policy and campaigns at the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, said: "It is right that the Labour Party has put work at the heart of its manifesto.
"There are few things that people care about more than their jobs, and making great work happen should be a priority for any incoming government."
