Navigating Maternity Leave as an Outsourced Employee in India: What Are My Rights?

I am working in an institute for more than a year, and now I am 6 months pregnant. When I asked for maternity benefits, my officers told me that I am an outsourced employee and not directly related to our institution. Leave may be sanctioned, but pay during the leave period may not be sanctioned. Please give me an immediate reply to this. What does our Indian constitution say about this? I am currently working in Pune but am originally from Chennai.

Thank you.

Regards

Please inform your employers that as the principal employer, they are responsible for providing all statutory benefits. Whether an employee is on the company's payroll or is an outsourced worker, ultimately it is the duty of the principal employer to adhere to the statutory provisions.

Illustrative Case Study

Allow me to illustrate with a classic case. A prominent IT company in Bangalore recently received a show cause notice from the labor department for employing security guards on National Holidays such as the 15th of August, without paying them triple the usual salary as mandated for working on these days. The company had failed to comply with this requirement. Interestingly, the labor department did not issue the notice to the Security Agency for violating the Karnataka Shops and Establishment Rule of 1963; instead, it was directed at the IT company as the principal employer.

Responsibility in Case of Accidents

Consider a scenario where an outsourced employee, working in a factory, meets with an accident. In such a case, who is responsible for providing compensation as per the Workers Compensation Act – the contractor or the principal employer? Clearly, it is the latter.

I welcome input from other senior members. In the meantime, please review the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961 and the Contract Labour Regulations Act of 1972.

Thank you.

Regards,
DVD

Thank you, sir, for your kind reply. I can provide you with some detailed information here. I am currently working at the National Institute of Naturopathy in Pune, which is a central government institution. However, we are outsourced through SIGMA Human Resources in Pune, and they pay us every month. We are entitled to only eight casual leaves per year. Just yesterday, I inquired with my director, who heads NIN Pune, about this. He explained that as a government institution, we are considered contract employees and, therefore, not eligible for certain benefits. Kindly advise me on what steps I should take next, sir.