Are Companies Allowed to Keep Women Employees After 8 PM? Understanding the Rules and Permissions

Hi, Sir, I came to know that women employees should not be asked to be in the company after 8:00 pm as per their protection act. If they are asked to stay, then the company has to take some kind of permission. Is this right?

The Factories Act allows female employees to work up to 7 pm. If you want to engage any female employees beyond the permitted hours, you have to get permission from the authorities, specifically the inspectorate. Nowadays, they also allow female employees to work night shifts, but you must maintain certain facilities for their safety.

Regards,
Alphonse

Thank you, sir. Our company, an SEO company, has adjusted our timings to 12-9 pm. As a result, our company needs to seek permission regarding our female employees. Please let me know.

Is it a manufacturing company or a commercial establishment?

Regards,
Saikumar
HR & Labour Law Advisor
Mumbai

Well, as we all know, the Factories Act of 1948 specifies the maximum working hours per day for all male and female employees: 8 hours plus 2 hours of overtime, totaling 10 hours, and 48 hours in a week. Apart from that, there is an act for women's employee protection, the "Protection of Women Against Sexual Harassment at the Workplace Bill, 2007," which is essentially meant to provide facilities and a good and healthy work atmosphere for women employees, applicable throughout India. However, there is nothing in the act that requires employers to get permission for women employees to work at night.

http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/medi...sment_bill.pdf

Bombay High Court Order on Women Working at Night

I would like to share some details of an order from the Bombay High Court regarding women employees working at night and their safety. The Bombay High Court observed that the onus of ensuring the safety of women who work late night shifts lies with the companies, and proper measures should be adopted to ensure that women are safe. A division bench of Justice V.M. Kanade and Justice P.D. Kode observed, “Companies employing women to work graveyard shifts should ensure their safety. It is the responsibility of the company concerned to ensure that the women employees reach back home safely.”

The observations came while hearing the death sentence confirmation of two accused convicted for the rape and murder of a BPO employee in Pune in 2007. The two accused, Purushottam Borade (26) and Pradeep Kokade (20), were sentenced to death under sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 364 (kidnapping), 376 (rape), and 302 (murder), among others. The court pointed out that most BPOs are located on the outskirts of the city. They have to ensure that women traveling at night reach home safely.

The court also queried whether compensation can be recovered from the company or the accused when a crime is committed against women. As for the present case, the trial court at the time of conviction in March this year observed that the incident had sent shock waves throughout the city of Pune. The trial court observed that it is satisfied that the impact of the crime on the community, particularly women working night shifts at this hub of the information technology center, brings the case within the rarest of rare cases, which merits the death penalty and none else.

Purushottam, a driver with a logistics company, picked up the victim from her home on the fateful night of November 1, 2007, to take her to the Wipro office for her night shift. However, she was abducted and taken to a secluded field in a nearby village where she was raped and murdered. The victim's body was discovered by a farmer the following morning, and the two accused were nabbed within a day.

Published: Monday, Sep 3, 2012, 21:55 IST
By DNA Correspondent | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA

By the way, why are you specifically looking for an answer regarding women working after 8?

The IT, BPOs, and Software industries are already exempt from the female working hour restriction. A provision is made to provide pick-up from the residence and drop-off at the residence upon completion of their working hours. Please refer to the IT Act of 2000.

Regards,
Bharathi

Looks like you are in the UK shift, working with European customers for your company. In IT companies, it is allowed to have female workers stay post the allowed time of 7:00 PM; however, the company should have necessary safety measures in place. If they do, there is no problem. If not, then I think you need to raise this issue first with facilities, and then with the company registrar.

Thank you.

I am not sure whether the Protection of Women Against Sexual Harassment at Workplaces Bill 2007 has become an Act. Notwithstanding this, the Shops and Establishments Acts prescribe a maximum time limit for women to be employed at night. The Shops Acts also, having regard to the requirements of the IT and ITES companies, exempt them from these restrictions subject to conditions that the employer should take care of the safety and security of women employed at night, such as providing for their pick-up and drop, etc. To my knowledge, states like Karnataka and Maharashtra have imposed such conditions of safety. Please check with the A.P. Shops Act.

Regards,
B. Saikumar
HR & Labour Law Advisor
Mumbai

I have observed major private banks making their women employees work from 9 in the morning until late at night (with no specific end time, but at a minimum until 8 pm, sometimes extending as late as 10 pm). Additionally, they do not provide any transportation facilities, and they seem least concerned about the safety of their women employees. I witnessed two women employees working until 10 o'clock at night, with only one security person outside the bank. This situation is extremely dangerous. Are there any strict laws in place that would allow us to fight against this?

Shops and Commercial Establishments Act

The Shops and Commercial Establishments Act regulates working conditions in shops and commercial establishments. These establishments are defined under the respective State enactment.

Earlier, night shifts for women were prohibited. However, after the latest amendment, particularly in the Karnataka Shops and Establishment Act of 1961, this ban has been lifted. Permission is required, which must be submitted to the Labour Commissioner in Form S. Regulations regarding safety and security are provided in the form.

Regards,
SAPNA