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H R BULLETIN VOLUME 14
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HUMANE-R|VOLUME14
HR BULLETIN
Workers will have to give 60-day notice before going on strike If an industrial establishment has up to 300 workers, it need not take Govt approval to hire or fire them The proposed Industrial Relations Code Bill 2020, seeks to give more flexibility to industrial establishments to employ or fire workers without Government approval, if they have a workforce of up to 300 workers. The present limit is 100 or more. However, it is also proposed that workers will have to provide a 60-day notice before going on strike. They can only go on strike two months after facing proceedings before a Tribunal or a National Industrial Tribunal. These alterations were suggested in the Lok Sabha on September 19, when the The Code on Social Security, 2020 as well as The Occupation Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020, were introduced by Labour and Employment Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar. These Bills are expected to make the Labour Laws more simple and benefit the over 50 crore workers in India across the organised and unorganised sectors.
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Henceforth, owners of industrial establishments with up to 300 workers need not obtain a standing order from the Government if they wish to lay off workers. This flexibility to employers will also give less rights to workers to protest or go on strikes. However, standing order will be required to lay off workers by any industrial establishment wherein “three hundred or more than three hundred workers, are employed, or were employed on any day of the preceding twelve months”. While states where this has been implemented have experienced an increase in employment, according to experts, this proposal will only lead to establishments introducing random service conditions for their workforce. The employers will enjoy too much flexibility to take on or dismiss workers citing financial inability or accusing them of inappropriate conduct, which will throw any sense of job security for the workers out the window. It is also proposed that workers will have to provide a 60day notice before going on strike. They can only go on strike 60 days after facing proceedings before a Tribunal or a National Industrial Tribunal. Currently, only people working with public utility services— water, electricity, natural gas, telephone and other essential services — are required to give notice within six weeks’ before going on strike or within 14 days of serving such a notice. A reskilling fund has also been proposed wherein the primary contribution will be made by the employer, equal to 15 days’ wages last drawn by the worker before layoff. However, which other sources will contribute to such a fund is not clear. Changes have been suggested to expand the social security of migrant workers and redefine ‘workers’ to make it more inclusive of inter-state migrant workers. The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code defines inter-state migrant workers as those who have come from one state, of their own accord, and found work in another state, which is giving them an income of up to Rs 18,000 a month. The suggested definition distinguishes between the present definition of only contractual employment.
Earlier the Code provided for temporary lodging for workers near worksites, but this has been dropped. However, a travel allowance of a lumpsum amount has been proposed towards fare for the workers’ journey to and from their hometown. Setting up of a National Security Board has been suggested by the Social Security Code, to give recc..
Read more at: https://www.hrkatha.com/news/employers-can-now-hire-fire-workerswithout-govt-permission/
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Labour Codes 2020: Unorganised workers to be more socially secure A ‘social security fund’ will be set up to cover the approx. 40 crore workers in the unorganised sector While the size of the gig economy may seem small compared to the traditional economy, it is rapidly growing. Given the fact that workers today, especially Millennials seek flexibility, the community of gig and platform workers is set to multiply, and very fast. The good news is that they will soon enjoy social security. Under the suggested labour reforms, the Central Government has given special consideration to those employed in the unorganised sector, by offering them life and disability cover; health and maternity benefits; old-age protection; education; housing and other benefits. Suitable welfare schemes will be created for the benefit of unorganised workers, including provident fund, employment injury benefit, housing, educational schemes for children, upskilling opportunities, funeral assistance and old-age homes. For gig and platform workers, as well as other unorganised workers, the Central Government may constitute a Social Security Fund to provide, as the name suggests, social security to these workers. All such schemes may be partly funded by the state government and partly by the Central government or wholly funded by the Centre. They may also be partly funded by the state and Central governments and partly by the contributions from the beneficiaries themselves. The schemes may even be supported by the corporate social responsibility funds as stated in the Companies Act, 2013. Facilitation centres established by the Central or state governments shall spread awareness and circulate information on available social security schemes for the unorganised workers. They will help these workers to obtain registration forms, and also fill, process and forward them so that they get enrolled in social secure..
Read more at: https://www.hrkatha.com/news/compensation-benefits/labourcodes-2020-unorganised-workers-to-be-more-socially-secure/
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Microsoft-Nasscom tie up to skill 10 lakh students in AI The training will be offered free of cost to undergraduate students Microsoft and Nasscom Future Skills have collaborated to roll out an initiative that will equip about 10 lakh students with skills in artificial intelligence (AI), by next year. The programme, scheduled to begin on September 21, is called ‘AI Classroom Series’ and comprises three modules, covering the fundamentals of data science, machine learning models on Azure and cognitive services required to build intelligent solutions. A part of Microsoft’s global skilling programme, this partnership with the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) will see training being imparted via online classes, which will comprise live demos, hands-on workshops and assignments through self-learning, virtual instructor-led training and mentoring. These lessons will be imparted to undergraduate students, free of cost, and the students will be allowed to choose from comfortable time slots, so that they can learn at their own pace. Interested students who register, will be able to access Microsoft’s content and developer tools, and also enjoy access to GitHub’s products. On successful completion of the programme, students will be awarded participation certificates from Nasscom and Microsoft.
Microsoft plans to benefit 25 million people across the world through its global skilling initiative. The aim is to help people master new digital skills that are necessary to survive in a digital world. With countries focussing on recovering from the pandemic, access to digital skills will be necessary to ensure “inclusive economic growth”. India desperately needs an AI-ready ecosystem for economic growth.
These online courses will be delivered by experts, including those from Microsoft and Nass..
Read more at: https://www.hrkatha.com/news/learningdevelopment/microsoft-nasscom-tie-up-to-skill-10-lakh-students-in-ai/
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Wells Fargo CEO apologises for insensitive comment about Black talent Charles Scharf had unconsciously stated how challenging it was to meet diversity goals because of the dearth of qualified Black talent, inviting a lot of criticism Charles Scharf, CEO, Wells Fargo, had, in a memo to the employees, commented that the talent pool in the corporate world in the US was rather limited when it came to Blacks. While the comment was made in June, it became public this week, inviting a lot of criticism on social media. Scharf then apologised for the same, saying that his words only reflected his personal unconscious bias, and did not indicate that the Company was in anyway lacking in terms of its diversity agenda. Having committed to hiring more minority candidates, the American multinational financial services company has not only invested in anti-racism training sessions at the Bank, but has also been hiring through several Black university and institutions.
However, during a Zoom meeting, some Black employees took offence when Scharf said that Wells Fargo was finding it difficult to meet its diversity goals because there were not enough qualified talent among the minorities. In his apology, Scharf clarified that Wells Fargo and the financial sector, in general, certainly had talented employees from diverse backgrounds, and that he never intended to state otherwise. Along with his apology, Scharf also listed a few appointments made at Wells Fargo that proved how committed the Bank was to its diversity agenda. He reiterated how had vowed to double the number of Black leaders in the Bank over the next five years and linked executive salaries with the accomplishment of diversity goa..
Read more at: https://www.hrkatha.com/news/wells-fargo-ceo-apologises-forinsensitive-comment-about-black-talent/
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Annual holiday for mental health on Oct 9 Media company, Thomson Reuters, has introduced an annual company holiday on October 9, calling it Mental Health Day. With so much uncertainty surrounding people, it is natural for everyone to be anxious and worried about their own future and that of their families. Employers are increasingly waking up to this fact, and trying to do something about it.
Given that October 10 is World Mental Health Day, this official day off on October 9 for Thomson Reuters staff, seeks to focus and pay more attention to the mental as well as overall wellbeing of the workforce, in the long term. The employees have already been given free access to a daily meditation and mindfulness app. A training is also being organised for the staff on the usage of the same. Considering the manner in which the unexpected COVID-19 outbreak has taken a toll on the mental and physical health of people the world over, and also adversely affected global economies, the significance of mental health has dawned on businesses. Not only are employees struggling to cope with staying home and working, they are even overly stressed and burning out. There has been a rise in cases of mental exhaustion, fatigue, and depression. Earlier, Google had announced a day off for its employees to relax, which combined with Labour Day had offered an extended..
Read more at: https://www.hrkatha.com/employee-health/annual-holiday-for-mentalhealth-on-october-9/
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