PremiumNEW DELHI: The union labour and employment ministry will provide a 12-digit unique account number to each of the 380 million informal workers as part of its exercise to create a national database.
The database will be rolled out on 26 August after months of delay and Supreme Court’s criticism of labour ministry's slow pace of action. The database will allow enrolment of workers in the informal sector, gig economy and also of firms having less than 10 employees.
Each worker enrolled in the database will be given a 12-digit Universal Account Number (UAN) and a card containing demographic details. The move will allow portability of welfare schemes and flow of monetary and non-monetary benefits during times of crisis.
Trade unions will play a role in populating the database and creating awareness among workers, with states key implementing authorities. Each state will set up a monitoring unit to track the progress made and how to better implementation related glitches.
The development comes after almost a year and a half of the mass reverse migration of workers following the nationwide lockdown imposed on 25 March last year to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease.
The exercise was delayed and the second covid wave exposed shortcomings and also highlighted that the labour ministry has lagged in putting in place a national database that will help informal sector workers get welfare benefits.
Once the digital backbone is rolled out in collaboration with NIC, unorganised workers including construction workers, migrants, gig and platform workers, street vendors, domestic workers, agriculture workers, among others, will be added to the national database.
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