Introduction of New Labor Reform Legislations
The government is striving to introduce five more labor reform legislations in the winter session of Parliament, including bills to introduce a new wage and industrial relations code and amend laws governing child labor and bonus payments.
These are in addition to the amendments to the Factories Act of 1948 that the government had listed for introduction in the Lok Sabha last week but eventually wasn't tabled. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday that the Opposition party, with 45 MPs in the Lok Sabha, would not allow the dilution of labor laws by the NDA government, just as it had thwarted its attempts at changing the land acquisition law.
The government has officially listed the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Bill, 2015, for consideration and passing in the Lok Sabha this week, which would be the penultimate week of the winter session. The law is being changed to make more employees eligible for a bonus and double such payments. It proposes to raise the salary ceiling for statutory bonus payments to Rs 21,000 per month from Rs 10,000 specified under the 1965 law.
Small Factories Regulation Bill
The Small Factories (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Services) Bill, for instance, seeks to make it easier for manufacturing firms to employ up to 40 workers by exempting them from compliance with six labor laws, which include the Factories Act, the Industrial Disputes Act of 1947, and the Shops and Establishment Acts of respective states.
Code on Wages and Industrial Relations
The code on wages aims to replace four different laws pertaining to salaries: the Payment of Wages Act of 1936, the Minimum Wages Act of 1948, the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, and the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976. Similarly, the code on industrial relations would substitute three different laws: the Trade Unions Act of 1926, the Industrial Disputes Act, and the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act of 1946.
Child Labor Amendment Bill
The government has also proposed to introduce the Child Labor (Protection and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012, in the Rajya Sabha this week. The Bill proposes that children below fourteen years of age may only be allowed to work in their family enterprises. It also bars the employment of children in hazardous occupations until the age of 18 years. Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi has raised concerns about the Bill reducing the list of such occupations from 83 to just three—mining, inflammable substances and explosives, and hazardous occupations as per the Factories Act. This would leave the door open for children to be employed in sectors that are largely family-run, like the carpet industry, embroidery, and agriculture.
Location: Bangalore, India
Tags: Factories Act, City-India-Bangalore, code on wages, industrial relations code, Payment of Wages Act, statutory bonus, Equal Remuneration Act, industrial relations, Industrial Disputes Act, wages act, minimum wages act, industrial disputes, labor laws, minimum wages, Country-India
Regards
The government is striving to introduce five more labor reform legislations in the winter session of Parliament, including bills to introduce a new wage and industrial relations code and amend laws governing child labor and bonus payments.
These are in addition to the amendments to the Factories Act of 1948 that the government had listed for introduction in the Lok Sabha last week but eventually wasn't tabled. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday that the Opposition party, with 45 MPs in the Lok Sabha, would not allow the dilution of labor laws by the NDA government, just as it had thwarted its attempts at changing the land acquisition law.
The government has officially listed the Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Bill, 2015, for consideration and passing in the Lok Sabha this week, which would be the penultimate week of the winter session. The law is being changed to make more employees eligible for a bonus and double such payments. It proposes to raise the salary ceiling for statutory bonus payments to Rs 21,000 per month from Rs 10,000 specified under the 1965 law.
Small Factories Regulation Bill
The Small Factories (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Services) Bill, for instance, seeks to make it easier for manufacturing firms to employ up to 40 workers by exempting them from compliance with six labor laws, which include the Factories Act, the Industrial Disputes Act of 1947, and the Shops and Establishment Acts of respective states.
Code on Wages and Industrial Relations
The code on wages aims to replace four different laws pertaining to salaries: the Payment of Wages Act of 1936, the Minimum Wages Act of 1948, the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, and the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976. Similarly, the code on industrial relations would substitute three different laws: the Trade Unions Act of 1926, the Industrial Disputes Act, and the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act of 1946.
Child Labor Amendment Bill
The government has also proposed to introduce the Child Labor (Protection and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012, in the Rajya Sabha this week. The Bill proposes that children below fourteen years of age may only be allowed to work in their family enterprises. It also bars the employment of children in hazardous occupations until the age of 18 years. Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi has raised concerns about the Bill reducing the list of such occupations from 83 to just three—mining, inflammable substances and explosives, and hazardous occupations as per the Factories Act. This would leave the door open for children to be employed in sectors that are largely family-run, like the carpet industry, embroidery, and agriculture.
Location: Bangalore, India
Tags: Factories Act, City-India-Bangalore, code on wages, industrial relations code, Payment of Wages Act, statutory bonus, Equal Remuneration Act, industrial relations, Industrial Disputes Act, wages act, minimum wages act, industrial disputes, labor laws, minimum wages, Country-India
Regards
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