The Labor Department is proposing about five major changes in the law. The most important change is to increase the daily working hours from 9 to 10 hours. According to the proposal, now no adult employee can be made to work for more than 10 hours in a day.
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The Maharashtra government is considering increasing the working hours of employees in private institutions. Currently, employees work 9 hours a day, but according to the proposal, this time can now increase to 10 hours. This change will be made by amending the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017. This law determines the working hours in shops, hotels, entertainment places and other commercial establishments.
Discussion in the cabinet
According to a Hindustan Times (HT) report, the state labour department presented the proposal to the cabinet on Tuesday. The ministers discussed it, but they have sought some more information before approving it. A senior minister said that more clarity is needed about the provisions of the proposal and their impact. Therefore, no final decision has been taken yet.
What are the proposed changes?
The Labor Department is proposing about five major changes in the law. The most important change is to increase the daily working hours from 9 to 10 hours. According to the proposal, now no adult employee will be able to work more than 10 hours in a day.
Also, another proposal is that if an employee works for more than 6 hours continuously, then he will have to be given a half-hour break in between. Currently, the limit of continuous working hours is 5 hours.
Apart from this, there is also a proposal to increase the limit of overtime. Currently, an employee can do overtime only for 125 hours in three months, it has been suggested to increase it to 144 hours. The total working hours in a day (including overtime) are currently in the limit of 10.5 hours, which has been said to be increased to 12 hours. There is also a proposal to completely remove the upper limit of 12 hours daily in case of essential work, that is, if needed, employees can be made to work for more than 12 hours.
To whom will these changes apply?
If this proposal becomes a law, then these changes will apply only to those companies where 20 or more employees work. Currently, this law applies to establishments with 10 or more employees.
Why was such a proposal brought?
Officials say that this proposal has been brought keeping in mind the long-standing demand of the industry. However, discussions are still going on in the cabinet and it may take some time for any decision to be taken.
