The most recent bill
advocating changes to the Shops and Establishments Act applicable in the state
of Maharashtra is certain to bring about several benefits to workers and
owners. The main intent of the proposal has been:
-
Creating
more opportunities and a more favourable environment for women
-
Welfare
measures for health and safety of workers
-
Improving
efficiency and productivity of establishments
-
Bring
about uniformity in conditions extended to those employed in shops and
establishments
Salient Features of the Bill
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Application and registration: Establishments need to register online with
uploaded, self-certified documents. This is to be done within 60 days of
commencement of business. Closure of an establishment must be communicated
within 30 days.
-
Days and hours of work and rest: Operation
of shops is hereby permitted 24hours/7 days a week. Adults can work for no
longer than 9 hours a day/48 hours a week; and for not more than five hours
unless given a half-hour break. Spread-over should not exceed 10 hours on any
day, and 12 hours in the case of intermittent nature of work.
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Women employees: There shall be no discrimination against women
in employment, transfer and payment of wages. They shall be made to work only
between 7am and 9.30pm. Safety, dignity and honour will be protected at all
times, and in the event of working between 9.30pm and 7am, transportation from
workplace to home must be provided.
-
Overtime: Anyone working beyond permissible limits is entitled to overtime at
twice the rate of ordinary wages. Overtime shall not exceed 125 hours over a
period of 3 months.
-
Holiday and Leave: Every worker must be ensured at least one day’s rest (24 continuous hours) in a week. If denied
a weekly holiday, a compensatory day off must be given. When working on a day
of rest, worker is entitled to twice the rate of wages, and no deduction shall
be made on account of weekly holiday. Every employee is entitled to eight day’s casual leave with wages during a calendar year,
credited on a quarterly basis. Leave may be accumulated upto 45 days and
carried forward. Leave applied for 15 days prior and not sanctioned, when over
the 45 day limit may be encashed. Unavailed leave barring casual and festival
leave must be paid in full by the employer. 8 paid holidays (against the earlier limit of 4) are mandatory. While 4
of these are fixed, the rest are to be agreed mutually by employer and workers.
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Health and welfare: Measures for health and safety including cleanliness,
ventilation, sanitation, drinking water, first aid, toilet facilities, and
canteens when employees are over 100 in number must be made. Where employees
are over 50 in number, facilities for a creche must be in place on premises, or
in a common establishment within a radius of 1 kilometre.
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Offenses: Contravention may attract a fine of upto one lakh, with an added fine
of rupees two thousand a day for repeated contravention. Total fine shall not
exceed two thousand per worker. Contravention resulting in bodily harm can
attract imprisonment for six months and/or fine between 2 and 5 lakhs. Non-submission
or furnishing of documents for inspection can attract fine upto 2 lakhs, with a
penalty of 1 lakh for each offense if non-compliant.
Points to Ponder:
While all of the initiatives
are certain to provide added benefits to workers, there are some aspects worthy
of a thought:
-
When
calculating hours or days of work, are the calculations made based on a 365 day
year, or based on a 240 day year?
-
While the
coverage of casual leave is laudable, should the angle of sick leave also have
been touched upon?
View the complete,
official copy of the proposed bill at http://comply4hr.com/noti/2016/MHSAE2017Aug8.pdf
