Are PF and ESI Benefits Mandatory for All Companies? Seeking Clarity on Employee Rights

Hi all, I worked in a small IT company with a staff of 150 employees. However, there was no ESI or PF provided; only Professional Tax (PT) and TDS were deducted from the salary. Is it possible for a company to not offer PF and ESI benefits? Are PF and ESI not mandatory for all companies? Please clarify my doubts.

Regards, Sai Sowmya

Once the workforce strength crosses 20, the organization is covered under the EPF Act. However, for ESI, organizations with 10 or more employees within the specified area limits are covered.

Regards,
S. Sethupathy, Erode

Thank you for your reply. I am aware of the eligibility criteria for PF and ESI. My question is whether an organization can skip these two requirements, as my previous organization did.

It is not possible to skip this. Even in later years, they will be issued a coverage notice, and then they will have to pay the arrears from the date they are actually coverable. Try to explain this to them.

All the best,

Regards, S. Sethupathy, Erode

Thanks, Sethupathy. Actually, I am not working there currently. It's been running for more than 3 years, and yet they don't have PF or ESI. Recently, when I went for a few interviews, I was asked how come there was no PF or ESI in a company of 150 employees. They just have PT and TDS.