THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The cabinet on Wednesday gave its clearance to introduce a bill for amending certain provisions of the Kerala Shops and Commercial Establishments Act to bring about timely changes, which would ensure comfortable working environment for women employees.
Among other things, the bill includes provisions for providing seating arrangements for women, especially for those in shops, during working hours.
The amendment bill envisages redefining the concept of employees so as to include those who are recruited through other agencies to an establishment.
Several firms, in order to circumvent employee rights, have been employing staff supplied by other agencies. Once the amendment is in place, the government will have the discretionary power to include all those categories of manpower under the definition of employees of an establishment.
The amendment will also legally permit a firm to extend working hours of women employees from the existing 7pm to 9pm, with conditions. The firm should provide necessary security to the women employees, including transportation facility to their place of accommodation and they should be employed only in batches that at least consists of five employees, of which two should be women.
The present act does not allow the employer to seek the
services of women employees from 7pm to 6am.
The bill will also increase the fine for violation of each provision of the Act, from the existing Rs 5,000 to Rs 1 lakh. In case of repeated violation, the fine has been increased from Rs 10,000 to Rs 2 lakh.
While a new chapter will be added to the Act through the bill that will have enough provisions to prevent sexual atrocities against women and children, the provision that the shops and commercial establishments should be shut down mandatorily one day in a week will be scrapped. Instead, the provision will be added that the employees should be mandatorily given one day off day every week.
