Post-Covid world: Flexible hours, do business from home amongst norms

Incorporating the idea of ‘work from home’ and versatile shifts within the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Labour Ministry has issued draft mannequin standing order for the companies sector for the primary time. The Ministry has additionally issued draft mannequin standing orders — guidelines of conduct for employees employed in institutions — for manufacturing and mining sectors individually, giving a 30-day window to stakeholders to ship their feedback for these orders.
“Subject to conditions of appointment or agreement between employer and workers, employer may allow a worker to work from home for such period or periods as may be determined by the employer,” the draft mannequin standing order for the companies sector acknowledged.
The Indian Express had reported on December 11 concerning the authorities’s proposal to carry new guidelines by the mannequin standing order for the service sector to include, amongst different issues, flexibility of labor timings and the choice to do business from home. The mannequin standing orders for the companies, manufacturing and mining sectors shall be relevant to the commercial institutions using 300 or extra variety of employees who’re working within the industrial institutions lined beneath the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020.
The draft guidelines present for versatile shifts inside the weekly shift restrict of 48 hours per week. “More than one shift may be worked in a department or departments or any section of a department of the industrial establishment at the discretion of the employer. If more than one shift is worked, the worker shall be liable to be transferred from one shift to another. No shift working shall be discontinued without twenty one days’ notice being given in writing to the workers prior to such discontinuance,” it stated.
For fee of wages, the draft order states that the employees should be paid wages on a working day earlier than the seventh day after the final day of the wage interval, for which the wages are payable.
It additionally offers for medical assist if a employee meets with an accident in the middle of his employment, then the employer, at his expense, must make passable preparations for speedy and vital medical assist to the injured employee and shall prepare for his additional remedy, if thought-about vital.

The draft order for the companies sector additionally offers that within the case of the IT sector, the working hour shall be as per settlement or circumstances of appointment between employer and employees. “Habitual (offender) with respect to indiscipline has been defined if the worker found guilty of any misconduct three or more times in preceding twelve months,” as per the draft order.
Rail journey facility has been prolonged to the employees within the (complete) mining sector. Currently, it’s being availed by the employees in coal mines solely.
The mannequin standing orders adopted in respect of an industrial institution may also be relevant to all different models of the commercial institution regardless of location, the Ministry stated.
As per the orders, the place an employer adopts mannequin standing orders of the central authorities with respect to issues related to industrial institution or endeavor, then, such mannequin standing order shall be deemed to have been licensed.
The Industrial Relations Code handed by Parliament in September had raised the brink for requirement of a standing order to over 300 employees from 100 employees earlier. This implies industrial institutions with as much as 300 employees usually are not required to furnish a standing order – one thing that has been criticised as giving house to corporations to introduce arbitrary service circumstances.