Government Passes Labor Law Reform Bill in Rajya Sabha
The government succeeded on Tuesday in getting one of the laws in its labor law reform kitty, the Labour Laws (Exemption from Furnishing Returns and Maintaining Registers by Certain Establishments) Amendment Bill, 2011, passed in the Rajya Sabha, with the Congress supporting the Bill.
The Left parties, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), and Janata Dal (United), or JD(U), opposed the Bill, terming it "anti-labor and not labor reform." TMC's D Bandopadhyay termed the Bill "draconian."
The Bill increases the number of laws under which units and small establishments will be exempt from maintaining registers and filing returns. It also redefines "small establishment" to mean a unit employing between 10-40 people. (The original Act capped the limit at 19 workers.)
The Bill will now have to be moved in the Lok Sabha.
Purpose of the Amendment
Moving the Bill in the post-lunch session, Labor Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said the main purpose of the amendment is the simplification of laws. "Transparency, accountability, and enforcement will be taken care of. The workers' interests will also be taken care of," said the minister. Even as the Left parties objected to the minister saying there was consensus among trade unions on the move, the minister insisted it was aimed at making procedures simpler for establishments.
Congress' Madhusudan Mistry, a trade unionist himself, spoke out against the Bill, which according to him would "hamper the interests of laborers and workers." He, however, conceded his party was supporting the Bill.
Political Reactions
Bahujan Samaj Party's Satish Chandra Mishra pointed out that the Bharatiya Janata Party had opposed the Bill while in Opposition but was now clearing it.
JD(U)'s K C Tyagi reminded the Treasury benches how during the former National Democratic Alliance government under A B Vajpayee, the then labor minister Sharad Yadav had ensured that any Bill which would hamper workers' interest was kept in cold storage.
Yadav said, "Foreign investors are wary of labor laws and so this government which is keen to bring in FDI (foreign direct investment) is sacrificing the interests of poor workers."
Tapan Kumar Sen of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) attacked the government for amending the law and increasing the number of workers under those defined as small units to 40. He said this would amount to 71 percent of workers being thrown out of the ambit of protection of laws. "This is a betrayal of workers and the working class," he said.
Samajwadi Party's Vishambhar Prasad Nishad, too, opposed the Bill, arguing it would only favor the contractors and businessmen and there were no welfare measures.
"The government is anti-labor. This government is following the footsteps of the previous government, which drafted this Bill in 2011," he said.
The Bill was passed with a division of votes.
From India, Malappuram
Acknowledge(1)
Amend(0)
1446The government succeeded on Tuesday in getting one of the laws in its labor law reform kitty, the Labour Laws (Exemption from Furnishing Returns and Maintaining Registers by Certain Establishments) Amendment Bill, 2011, passed in the Rajya Sabha, with the Congress supporting the Bill.
The Left parties, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), and Janata Dal (United), or JD(U), opposed the Bill, terming it "anti-labor and not labor reform." TMC's D Bandopadhyay termed the Bill "draconian."
The Bill increases the number of laws under which units and small establishments will be exempt from maintaining registers and filing returns. It also redefines "small establishment" to mean a unit employing between 10-40 people. (The original Act capped the limit at 19 workers.)
The Bill will now have to be moved in the Lok Sabha.
Purpose of the Amendment
Moving the Bill in the post-lunch session, Labor Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said the main purpose of the amendment is the simplification of laws. "Transparency, accountability, and enforcement will be taken care of. The workers' interests will also be taken care of," said the minister. Even as the Left parties objected to the minister saying there was consensus among trade unions on the move, the minister insisted it was aimed at making procedures simpler for establishments.
Congress' Madhusudan Mistry, a trade unionist himself, spoke out against the Bill, which according to him would "hamper the interests of laborers and workers." He, however, conceded his party was supporting the Bill.
Political Reactions
Bahujan Samaj Party's Satish Chandra Mishra pointed out that the Bharatiya Janata Party had opposed the Bill while in Opposition but was now clearing it.
JD(U)'s K C Tyagi reminded the Treasury benches how during the former National Democratic Alliance government under A B Vajpayee, the then labor minister Sharad Yadav had ensured that any Bill which would hamper workers' interest was kept in cold storage.
Yadav said, "Foreign investors are wary of labor laws and so this government which is keen to bring in FDI (foreign direct investment) is sacrificing the interests of poor workers."
Tapan Kumar Sen of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) attacked the government for amending the law and increasing the number of workers under those defined as small units to 40. He said this would amount to 71 percent of workers being thrown out of the ambit of protection of laws. "This is a betrayal of workers and the working class," he said.
Samajwadi Party's Vishambhar Prasad Nishad, too, opposed the Bill, arguing it would only favor the contractors and businessmen and there were no welfare measures.
"The government is anti-labor. This government is following the footsteps of the previous government, which drafted this Bill in 2011," he said.
The Bill was passed with a division of votes.
From India, Malappuram
Acknowledge(1)Amend(0)CiteHR is an AI-augmented HR knowledge and collaboration platform, enabling HR professionals to solve real-world challenges, validate decisions, and stay ahead through collective intelligence and machine-enhanced guidance. Join Our Platform.
Major amendment in labour law in 2010.doc
TAMIMI LAbor LAw.pdf