Tamil Nadu Puts On Hold Bill Extending Factory Workers’ Shifts To 12 Hours

The Tamil Nadu authorities has determined to place a invoice that could permit a 12-hour workday in factories on hold, following protests from labour unions opposing the plan. According to a assertion issued on Monday, the Tamil Nadu authorities exceeded the invoice closing week, however it has now no longer but end up law. The All India Trade Union Congress and Centre of Indian Trade Unions, amongst different labour unions, antagonistic the invoice and deliberate a one-day strike subsequent month that could have an effect on tens of factories, pronounced information company Reuters.

The CM MK Stalin-led Tamil Nadu authorities exceeded the Factories (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Bill, 2023, with the purpose of attracting huge investments and growing employment possibilities for the nation`s younger people. The invoice said that people who labored 12 hours for 4 consecutive days might acquire 3 paid days off according to week. However, people raised issues approximately the right implementation of the guideline of thumb in factories.

Ministers, who met with union representatives on Monday, confident them that the nation might now no longer compromise on people’ welfare and that the prolonged running hours might most effective follow to positive sorts of factories accepted with the aid of using the authorities. While passing the Bill, Industries Minister Thangam Thennarasu stated that the overall running hours might continue to be unchanged. He additionally confident that the people might be capable of avail of the choice to paintings for 4 days per week and take 3 days’ depart. “This might immensely gain ladies people,” Thennarasu claimed.

Labour Welfare Minister C V Ganesan stated, “The closing 3 days might be paid depart and the present guidelines on leaves, overtime, salaries, etc., might continue to be unchanged. Action might be taken towards factories, which coerced their personnel to paintings towards their wishes.”

The authorities’s selection to put into effect a 12-hour workday become predicted to reinforce commercial manufacturing withinside the nation, which has obtained billions of greenbacks in investments from corporations in search of to diversify their deliver chains farfar from China, pronounced Reuters. Apple providers Foxconn and Pegatron, in addition to Nike shoemaker Pou Chen, are the various corporations which have invested withinside the nation.

However, K Bharathi, an activist with the Left Trade Union Centre, argued that the authorities had to withdraw the invoice, now no longer simply placed it on hold, as there has been a hazard that it might be reintroduced. Despite the authorities’s efforts to reassure people, labour unions continue to be sceptical approximately the implementation of the 12-hour workday and its effect on people’ welfare.