Eligibility of contractor leave criteria - how many leaves can be given to staff members for a year?

Hello everyone, My name is Vijay. I am working with the hospital as a HR manager. I wanted to know about leave applicability for staff members who are with us as professional contract holders. Basically, in my organization staff members are not on payroll but professional contract which is yearly renewable regularly. So my main question is " how many leaves can be given to staff members for a year?" " Are professional contract holders are eligible for benefit?"

I have been told :the contractor can avail a total of 30 paid holidays for the 12 months contract period. This leave can be availed proportionately for the completed contract period.As per law we are supposed to give only 16 PL and 8 casual holidays. Also, 4 National Holidays and 4 Festival Holidays.

Please guide. Thank you

Dear Mr. Vijay,

If you are treating the professionals as contractors, then no need to make provision for leaves. However, if you provide leaves to so-called contractors, then prima-facie, they will be treated as directly employed employees of your establishment.

- S. K. Mittal
9319956443

Dear Vijay,

I am not able to understand the terms " staff members " and " professional contract " in relation to your establishment being a hospital.

Normally, the term " members of staff " would collectively refer to the employees performing the staff functions like general administration, clerical works, watch and ward, house keeping etc., in an establishment whose main functions involve the employment of technical/ professional people.

In such a situation, you can hire the services of the professionals like doctor on assignment basis or on periodical basis under a contract for service so that their services are not required full time basis. The right example in the case of a hospital is the engagement of super specialist physicians or surgeons on contract basis on certain days only in a week. This I presume is what you called as professional contract. In as much as the arrangement is only a contract for service and not contract of service, such persons would not be the ' employees ' of the establishment to claim leave benefits. Therefore, no necessity of leave provisions for such people who work under a contract for service.

How can you engage the services of the so-called staff on individual contract basis?
It can be through a third party contract or by entering into fixed term contract with the individuals. In either case, the service conditions including leave applicable to the regular employees of the establishment would be equally applicable to such contract employees also.

That apart, hospitals / nursing homes are exempted from the State Shops and Establishments Acts, if I remember correct. So far as I know, there's no separate law governing such establishments except the Minimum Wages Act 1948 which has no leave provisions other than weekly day of rest .

Moreover, my personal view is that any professional expert like super speciality physicians, surgeons etc., will not come under the purview of the ID Act 1947 or any other labor law applicable to workman except the PG Act,1972 as their capacity of employment does not fall within the inclusive part of the term 'workman' u/s 2(s) of the ID Act,1947. Hence, if their individual contracts whether they be contracts for service or contracts of employment include leave provisions, no one can question it.

Therefore, you can continue with the existing leave benefits.

The contractor workman can avail leave @ one day per (20) twenty working day other than the weekly holidays with 3 National Holidays and 4 Festival Holidays (please check the state rule of festival holidays).

Umakanthan.M sir

Hospitals are no longer exempt from shop & establishment acts in all states.
Some states still have the exemption for 'Doctor's establishment' which is not same as a hospital, but a clinical practice of an individual doctor.

Further, some states like goa, provide exemption from only specific provisions of the act, not all of them