In ESI Act, there are certain provisions for exemption from ESI Act in the following cases:
i) Exemption for certain class of factories/esttt., ii) Exemption for certain class of employees & iii) Exemption for certain provisions fo the ESI.....
The first point that ESI Exemption committee will see at is : Whether the Employer is providing at par or superior benefits than ESI....but no company will give equal or more benefit than ESI, only for regular employees that too public sector only provides the benefits at par or superior benefits to ESI..... Since some of the main benefits given by the ESI are:
i) Sickness Benefit...Insured person is entitled for 91 days leave in one year with approximately 60% of his wages, besides the medical/hospital benefit;
ii) Enhanced Sickness Benefit:... Incase of Family planning, i.e. Tubectomy/vasectomy the concerned insured person/women are entitled for cash benefit more than or equal to their wages besides medical/hosptal facility;
iii) Extended Sickness Benefit:.. in case of certain long diseases like TB/Heart diseases...etc... even the medical benefit will be extended to 3 years irrespective of his employment position ...& cash benefit will be extended upto 2 years, in case if he is having 2 years of insurable employement..
iv) Disablement Benefit: If a person met with an injury/accident at work place or on the way to work place or return from workplace to home, he is entitled for Temporary disablement benefit, which nearly 80% of his wages, for which there is no limit, i.e. the leave may be extended beyond 91 days... If it results in loss his earling capacity due to loss of early part of body,ex. a part of finger, or a fracture to leg, etc..... he will be paid life long pension on the basis of the recommendations of the Medical Board, irrespective of the fact that whether he continues that employment or not; In case if dies due to that employment injury the pension will be paid to the dependants...ie. wife till life time or remarriage, children upto 21 years, widowed mother....
v) Maternity Benefit: If an I.W. completed 9 months service under ESI coverage and works for wages for 70 days in the concered contribution period she will be paid 84 days maternity benefit @ rate of more than her wages, besides medical/hospital facility;
Besides all these things Insured Persons/women are entitled for funeral expenses, superspeciality treatment, In cases of loss of job due to retrenchment he will be paid Unemployment allowances with certain terms and conditions...etc., What more........
Main salient feature in ESI is that there is no restriction of predisease condition as in Mediclaims...
Since ESI is providing handful of benefits......No company afford these things... Hence getting exemption is said to be highly difficult.......
Hope I clarified ur doubts....