Is It Necessary to Provide Seating on the Shop Floor? Seeking Guidance on Factory Practices

I am doing an assignment and need your valuable inputs on whether it is necessary to provide seating arrangements on the shop floor. The factories that I have visited did not have any seating arrangements for workers, but the Factories Act of 1948 mandates that seating arrangements be provided.

Can I receive guidance on the same?

Regards,
Pritee Wagh

Please go through the below chapter from the Factories Act.

44. Facilities for Sitting

44. Facilities for sitting. (1) In every factory, suitable arrangements for sitting shall be provided and maintained for all workers obliged to work in a standing position, so that they may take advantage of any opportunities for rest that may occur during their work.

(2) If, in the opinion of the Chief Inspector, the workers in any factory engaged in a particular manufacturing process or working in a particular room can efficiently do their work in a sitting position, he may, by order in writing, require the occupier of the factory to provide seating arrangements before a specified date for all workers so engaged or working.

(3) The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare that the provisions of sub-section (1) shall not apply to any specified factory or class or description of factories or to any specified manufacturing process.

You have to decide if the state government has not given any rules regarding this.

Regards,
Eswar.K
Manager - HR
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Seating Arrangements on Shop Floors

Sitting arrangements need not mean exactly chairs and tables and may not be feasible on most shop floors. For example, consider workers loading and unloading goods. In the factory I used to work, we had cement benches for the people to sit. Hopefully, that's the 'seating arrangement.'

Overcrowding:

(1) No room in any factory shall be overcrowded to an extent injurious to the health of the workers employed therein.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of sub-section (1), there shall be in every workroom of a factory in existence on the date of the commencement of this Act at least 9.9 cubic meters, and of a factory built after the commencement of this Act, at least 14.2 cubic meters of space for every worker employed therein. For the purposes of this sub-section, no account shall be taken of any space which is more than 4.2 meters above the level of the floor of the room.

(3) If the Chief Inspector, by order in writing, so requires, there shall be posted in each workroom of a factory a notice specifying the maximum number of workers who may, in compliance with the provisions of this section, be employed in the room.

(4) The Chief Inspector may, by order in writing, exempt, subject to such conditions, if any, as he may think fit to impose, any workroom from the provisions of this section if he is satisfied that compliance therewith in respect of the room is unnecessary in the interest of the health of the workers employed therein.

For all safety regulations, see Indian Labour Laws & Shram Suvidha Simplified at [URL=http://www.shramsamadhan.com/](http://www.shramsamadhan.com/).