Navigating Contract Labor License Renewal and Registration Issues in Construction: Need Expert Advice

Dear All,

We are a construction company working for a principal employer. When we started work last year, we took a contract labor license for our company and registered the establishment for our principal employer under the Contract Labor Act (R&A) 1970 with the Haryana Labor Department. As per the act, the contract labor license is valid for one year and needs to be renewed every year. However, there is no mention of the renewal of registration. When we applied for the renewal of the license, they raised the following objections:

1. The registration is not renewed.
2. The principal employer as well as the contractor has not made a contribution to the labor welfare fund (@Rs.15/- per worker per month).

To their first objection, I am of the view that registration is only a one-time process and does not need renewal. For their second objection, I am of the view that this contribution is only for companies falling under the "Factory Act," and since we are a construction company and registered under the BOCW Act also, we need not contribute to this fund.

But I may be wrong. You are all requested to come forward with your expert views on this.

Dear Member,

Contract Labour (R&A) Act, 1970 & Haryana Rules

You are right in saying that according to the Contract Labour (R&A) Act, 1970 & Haryana Rules, we are not required to renew the Registration Certificate. However, if there is any change in the particulars specified in the RC, the Principal Employer of the establishment must inform the Registering Officer of such changes under Rule 18(4) of the Haryana CL (R&A) Rules, 1975. Therefore, although obtaining an RC is a one-time process, we must apply for an amendment to the RO. For instance, if the period of the contract in the RC is up to 2010 and you apply for renewal for 2011, the RO will ask you to produce the copy of the amended RC.

Punjab LWF Act, 1965 as Applicable to Haryana

Now, coming to your second point relating to the Punjab LWF Act, 1965, as applicable to the State of Haryana, it is submitted that the definition of the establishment is as follows: 'establishment' means a factory and includes any premises, including the precincts thereof, wherein and in any part of which any industry within the meaning of clause (j) of section 2 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (Act 14 of 1947), is carried on. It also includes a shop or a commercial establishment within the meaning of the Punjab Shops and Commercial Establishment Act, 1958 (Punjab Act 15 of 1958), in which, on any day, ten or more employees are employed or were employed during the preceding twelve months.

In my opinion, your construction industry is covered under the definition of 'industry' under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, and hence your work is also covered under the definition of 'establishment' under the Punjab LWF Act, 1965. This requires the deduction of LWFC from the employee and the deposit of this amount, along with the employer's contribution, with the HLWB. As you are also covered under the BOCW Act, 1966, there is a provision relating to membership, albeit with certain conditions. For details, one can refer to Rule 28 (section 12) of the Haryana BOCW (RE&CS) Rules, 2005, regarding the membership of building workers.

Opinion submitted as requested.

Regards,
R.N. Khola

Khola Ji is absolutely right. You can make the LWF contribution now. Firstly, submit the LWF contribution and go to the next step.

Regards,
Om Yadav
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Dear Jitendar,

As advised by Mr. R.N. Khola, only the license is required to be renewed. For any registration, there is no question of renewal that arises. Registration of Establishment under the Contract Labour Act and Registration of the construction site under the BOCW Act do not require any renewal procedure.

The objection raised by your authority is similar to the collection of some important documents shown in Kamal Hasan's Film Hindustani.

In the case of the Labour Welfare Fund, it should be paid as per the number of workmen who worked during the entire year (maximum numbers on any one day of the year), and BOCWW Cess is paid as per the contract value or the total cost of work done in the year (minimum 1% and a maximum of 2% as fixed by the concerned State Government).

Furthermore, one more aspect is there in BOCW Registration, i.e., the construction workers who worked more than 4 months in a construction company have to get registered as Construction workers, and they will be issued a Construction ID Card by the concerned Authority. For registered Construction workers, the Government is providing some benefits like free treatment, insurance cover, accidental death benefits, and other so-called facilities.

You can seek correct advice from Mr. R.N. Khola regarding the current requisites about Haryana Rules.

Regards

Thank you, Mr. Khola and Mr. Bhaskar, for your valuable advice. Unfortunately, this labor officer is not ready to listen and is adamant about renewal as, according to him, the RC mentions an "UP TO" date. As you can't argue much, I am going for renewal.

Best Regards,
Jitender

Can you please suggest what documents are required in the construction industry when we renew a labor license?

You can attach the following documents:

1. Labour Licence in Original
2. Application in Form VII (In Duplicate)
3. License Fee paid Challan in the appropriate Treasury
4. Work Order / Letter of Indent issued by PE for an extended period of the contract
5. Joint Undertaking for payment of Minimum Wages by PE & Contractor (Some states are asking for this Undertaking).

Thank you.

Dear seniors and colleagues,

If any contractor is not complying with the Labour License renewal after November, what should be the stand of the PE if the PE extends their work after January?

Regards,
Soubhik

Dear all,

Please inform me about the process for renewing an Online Labour Licence in Haryana.

Dear Mr. Ramesh,

I am Ramesh, currently working in a construction company as an HR professional. I am interested in obtaining registration for our establishment. Could you please provide guidance on the required documents for this process?

Your prompt assistance in this matter is greatly appreciated.

With regards,
Mr. Ramesh
9652670179