Designing a Leave Policy Across India: Should It Be Unified or State-Specific?

Dear All, I am working in the service industry with different branches all across India, registered under the Shops & Establishments Act. I want to design a leave policy (PAN India) for my company. I have understood the basic rules of leave as per the above-mentioned Act. However, I am unable to understand how to proceed since our branches are located in different states where the general rules of leaves differ according to the Shops & Establishments Act.

Query on Leave Policy Design

My query is: Do I have to design my company's leave policy combined, or should I design it as per the Shops & Establishments Act state-wise?

For example, in Delhi, the minimum PL compulsory is 15, and in Maharashtra, PL is 21. Which headcount should be taken (15 or 21) for PAN India?

Thanks & Regards,

Anish Sharma Sr. Executive [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]

As we all know, the Shops & Establishment Act is a State Act. If all branches are registered therein, then we are legally bound to grant different kinds of leaves as provided therein. You can also design a single leave policy for all the employees working in different states, but in that case, we will have to keep in mind the maximum number of leaves under each head as provided in different State Shops Acts to avoid non-implementation of this Act in any of the States. If the company wishes and has the capacity to grant these maximum leaves, then you can frame this single leave policy.

Opinion/comments submitted as requested.

Regards,
R.N.Khola

As everybody knows, each industry provides three kinds of leave, as listed below:

- EL 1.5
- CL 0.5
- SL 0.5

Thanks & Regards,
Bharat Mudgal
8010913619

Compliance with Local Laws for Leave Policies

The policies have to be compliant with local laws unless you have obtained an exemption from the local authorities to deviate, which is normally a lengthy process. I would recommend that you first create a table of the various provisions in different states pertaining to leave and then formulate a policy that is compliant with all. Some acts have provisions for casual leave, while some do not. Some specify the amount of sick leave, while some do not.

A good option would be, after tabulating the provisions, to determine the total number of leaves in your policy and mention in the policy that these provisions shall include provisions for casual and sick leave. This way, you would be able to comply with different regulations.

On the flip side, if you decide to encash the leave, it may add some extra financial burden as you will not be able to set aside casual/sick leave, which are normally non-encashable.

For running a large corporation, it is always advisable to have a common (1 central national level) policy.