Tags:
Journalism of Courage
The dozen activities and jobs in which the government intends to make contract labour easier include construction, transport services, 100 per cent export-oriented units, hospitals and educational institutions.
The group of ministers (GoM) on labour, which met on Wednesday, agreed to make the engaging of contract labour easier in a dozen sectors. The GoM agreed to the proposal that contract labour would not be prohibited in these activities and jobs.
According to officials in the ministry of labour, these activities are: sweeping, cleaning, dusting and collection and disposal of all kinds of waste; security services; gardening and maintenance of lawns; maintenance, servicing and repair of equipment, machines and plants; running of canteen services; and loading, unloading of raw material, finished products or any other material.
Other activities in which contract labour could be freely engaged are: housekeeping and laundry services; running of hospitals, educational & training institutes, guest houses, clubs, etc, where they are in the nature of support of an establishment; transport services, including ambulance services, where these are in the nature of support service of an establishment; courier services; all activities related to 100 per cent export-oriented units; construction and maintenance of buildings, roads and bridges; and any sudden incremental work pertaining to an establishment which needs to be accomplished in a time-bound manner.
The government intends to get the amendment in the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, cleared in the current session of Parliament, so that engaging contract labour is facilitated in the dozen sectors. The GoM has agreed to do away with Section 10 provisions, which allow authorities to prohibit employment of contract labour in any process, operation or other work in any establishment.
The revised legislation, Contract Labour (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Services) Bill, 2002, could not be placed before Parliament because there were some disagreements in the Cabinet over certain provisions of this amendment Bill.
A GoM was set up under Planning Commission deputy chairman KC Pant to evolve a consensus. At the Wednesday meeting of GoM, labour minister Sahib Singh, while agreeing to facilitate contract labour in a dozen sectors, wanted greater social security for workers.
He was not happy with the idea of distancing the principal employer from the contract worker and putting all responsibility on the contractor, as the amendment Bill intends to do.
Many ministers want the principal employer to be kept away from any such responsibility because the biggest principal employer is government and its agencies.
The GoM has also dispensed with the provision which provided that the principal employer maintain registers. This would free the principal employer from exhibiting forms and notices regarding particulars of hours of work and nature of duty of contract workers.
