Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020
The Occupational Safety, Health, and Working Conditions Code (“Code”) is enacted to consolidate and amend the laws regulating the occupational safety, health, and working conditions of the persons employed in an establishment, and for the connected and incidental matters.
Key Objectives
The Code comprises amalgamates, subsumes, and simplifies the below-mentioned laws under its 14 Chapters 143 Sections 3 Schedules.
The following 13 Central Acts will be repealed by this Code:
The Factories Act, 1948,
The Mines Act, 1952,
The Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Act, 1986,
The Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996,
The Plantations Labour Act, 1951,
The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970,
The Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979,
The Working Journalist and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service and Miscellaneous Provision) Act, 1955,
The Working Journalist (Fixation of Rates of Wages) Act, 1958,
The Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961,
The Sales Promotion Employees (Condition of Service) Act, 1976,
The Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966, and
The Cine Workers and Cinema Theatre Workers Act, 1981.
State-wise Rules for Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code
Check out the specifics by clicking on one of the states shown below.
Key Highlights
The Code simplifies the registration process prescribing that the establishment having ten or more employees are required to be registered with the registering officer appointed by the appropriate Government thereby minimizing the statutory compliances.
Defines factory with increase in the threshold on number of workers from ten and twenty workers to twenty and forty workers respectively and fixed the maximum limit of daily working hours for the factory workers as eight hours per day.
Mandates issuance of appointment letters to the employees and workers.
Defines core activity of establishment as any activity which is the purpose of constituting an establishment and activities that are incidentally essential and thereby prohibits employment of contract labour in such core activities, however, exempts a few situations such as, (i) the normal functioning of the establishment is such that the activity is ordinarily done through contractor, (ii) the activities are such that they do not require full time workers for the major portion of the day, or (iii) there is a sudden increase in the volume work in the core activity which needs to be completed in a specified time.
Expands the list of benefits to the inter-state migrant workman such as the benefits of the insurance and provident fund benefits either in the native state or the state of employment, portability of benefits of the inter-state migrant worker working for building or other construction work out of the building and other construction cess fund in the destination State where such inter-state migrant worker is employed.
Mandates free health check-ups for who attained the age of forty five years for prescribed industries such as factories, mines, plantations, workers employed in hazardous process.
Introduces the concept of limiting the carryover of annual leaves (paid leaves) to a maximum of 30 days but provision made for encashment of leave in excess of 30 days. Therefore, the concept of leave lapse will cease to exist by virtue of encashment.
Introduced the penalty provisions more strictly such as contravention of any provision of the Code shall attract a fine up to Rs. 2 Lakhs to 3 Lakhs.
Applicability
The Central Government will notify in the Official Gazette the date on which the Code will become effective and operational. It may be a single date appointed to bring the entire Code operational, or there may be different dates appointed for different provisions to come into force.
The Code is not applicable to the offices of the Central Government, offices of the State Government and any ship of war of any nationality, provided that the Code shall apply in case of contract labour employed through contractor in the offices of the Central Government or in the offices of the State Government, where the Central Government or, as the case may be, the State Government is the principal employer.
Registration of Establishment
Every employer of any establishment, that comes into existence after the commencement of this Code, and to which this Code is applicable, should, within sixty days from the date of such applicability of this Code, make an application electronically to the registering officer appointed by the appropriate Government for the registration of such establishment.
Any change in the ownership or management or in any that occurs after the registration of an establishment under this Code, should be intimated by the employer electronically to the registering officer within thirty days of such change in such form as may be prescribed and such amendment will be carried out in the certificate of registration electronically.
The employer of an establishment should, within thirty days of the closing of the establishment inform the closing of such establishment and certify payment of all dues to the workers employed in such establishment, to the registering officer and the registration will be cancelled in 60 days.
The employer of an establishment who has not registered the establishment as prescribed in this Code; or has not preferred appeal against the cancellation or revocation of the registration certificate of the establishment or the appeal so preferred has been dismissed, should not employ any employee in such establishment.
The establishment to which this Code applies, that has been already registered under any Central labour law, or any other law that may be notified by the Central Government and that applies to such establishment which is in existence at the time of the commencement of this Code, shall be deemed to have been registered under the provisions of this Code, subject to the condition that the registration holder provides the details of registration to the concerned registering officer within such time and in such form as may be prescribed.
Duties of Employer & Employees
Employers
Every employer should:
ensure that workplace is free from hazards which cause or are likely to cause injury or occupational disease to the employees;
comply with the occupational safety and health standards declared under the rules, regulations, bye-laws, or orders made under this Code;
provide such annual health examination or test free of costs to such employees of such age or such class of employees of establishments or such class of establishments, as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government;
provide and maintain, as far as is reasonably practicable, a working environment that is safe and without risk to the health of the employees;
ensure the disposal of hazardous and toxic waste including disposal of e-waste;
issue a letter of appointment to every employee on his/her appointment in the establishment, with such information and in such form as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government and where an employee has not been issued such appointment letter on or before the commencement of this Code, he/she shall, within three months of such commencement, be issued such appointment letter;
ensure that no charge is levied on any employee, in respect of anything done or provided for maintenance of safety and health at workplace including conduct of medical examination and investigation for the purpose of detecting occupational diseases;
relating to factory, mine, dock work, building or other construction work or plantation, ensure and be responsible for the safety and health of employees, workers and other persons who are on the work premises of the employer, with or without his knowledge, as the case may be.
Without affecting the above-mentioned, the duties of an employer shall particularly in respect of factory, mines, dock, building or other construction work or plantation include:
the provision and maintenance of plant and systems of work in the workplace that are safe and without risk to health;
the arrangements in the workplace for ensuring safety and absence of risk to health in connection with the use, handling, storage and transport of articles and substances;
the provision of such information, instruction, training, and supervision as are necessary to ensure the health and safety of all employees at work;
the maintenance of all places of work in the workplace in a condition that is safe and without risk to health and the provision and maintenance of such means of access to, and egress from, such places as are safe and without such risk;
the provision, maintenance or monitoring of such working environment in the workplace for the employees that is safe, without risk to health as regards facilities and arrangements for their welfare at work.
Duties and responsibilities of owner, agent, and manager in relation to mine
The owner and agent of every mine are jointly and severally responsible for making financial and other provisions and for taking such other steps as may be necessary for compliance with the provisions of this Code and the rules, regulations, bye-laws, and orders made thereunder, relating to mine.
In the event of any contravention by any person whosoever of any of the provisions of this Code or of the rules, regulations, bye-laws or orders made thereunder, relating to mine, except those which specifically require any person to do any act or thing or prohibit any person from doing an act or thing, besides the person who contravenes, then, each of the following persons shall also be deemed to be guilty of such contravention unless he/she proves that he/she had used due diligence to secure compliance with the provisions and had taken reasonable means to prevent such contravention, namely,
the official or officials appointed to perform duties of supervision in respect of the provisions contravened;
the manager of the mine;
the owner and agent of the mine;
the person appointed, if any, to carry out the responsibility.
Duties of designers, manufacturers, importers, or suppliers
To the extent it is applicable in the course of business carried on and to the matters within his/her control, every person who designs, manufactures, imports, or supplies any article for use in any establishment, should:
ensure so far as is reasonably practicable, that the article is so designed and constructed in the establishment as to be safe and without risk to the health of the workers when properly used; carry out or arrange for the carrying out of such tests and examination in the establishment as may be considered necessary to make this effective;
take steps as may be necessary to ensure that adequate information will be available:
in connection with the use of the article in any establishment;
about the use for which such article is designed and tested; and
about any conditions necessary to ensure that the article, when put to such use, shall be safe, and without risk to the health of the workers, provided that where an article is designed or manufactured outside India,then it shall be obligatory on the part of the importer to see:
that the article conforms to the same standards of such article manufactured in India; or
if the standards adopted in the country outside India for the manufacture of such article is above the standards adopted in India, that the article conforms to such standards in such country;
if there is no standard of such article in India, then, the article conforms to the standard adopted in the country from where it is imported at its national level.
The designer, manufacturer, importer, or supplier shall also comply with such duties as the Central Government may, in consultation with the National Occupational Safety and Health Advisory Board by regulations specify.
Every person, who undertakes to design or manufacture any article and substance for use in any factory, may carry out or arrange for the carrying out of necessary research with a view to the discovery and, so far as is reasonably, practicable, the elimination or minimisation of any risks to the health or safety of the workers to which the design or manufacture of article and substance may give rise to such risk.
Every person who erects or installs any article for use in a factory, shall ensure, so far as practicable, that such article so erected or installed does not make it unsafe or a risk to health when that article is used by the persons in such factory;
Who manufactures, imports, or supplies any substance for use in any factory should:
ensure, so far as practicable, that such substance when used in the factory does not make it unsafe or a risk to health of persons working in such factory;
carry out or arrange for carrying out of such tests and examination in relation to such substance as may be necessary;
take such steps as are necessary to secure that the information about the results of tests carried out in connection with the use of the substance as referred to in sub-clause (ii) is available in a factory along with conditions necessary to ensure its safe use and no risks to health;
who undertakes the manufacture of any substance for use in any factory shall carry out or arrange for carrying out of any necessary research with a view to discover and, so far as practicable, to ensure the elimination or minimisation of any risks to health or safety to which the substance may give rise out of such manufacture * or research;
Explanation:
article shall include plant and machinery;
substance means any natural or artificial substance whether in a solid or liquid form or in the form of a gas or vapour; and
substance for use in any factory means such substance, whether or not intended for use by persons working in a factory.
Duties of architect, project engineer and designer
The architect, project engineer or designer are responsible for any building or other construction work or the design of any project or part thereof relating to such building or other construction work to ensure that, at the planning stage, due consideration is given to the safety and health aspects of the building workers and employees who are employed in the erection, operation and execution of such projects and structures as the case may be.
Adequate care should be taken by the architect, project engineer and other professionals involved in the project, not to include anything in the design which would involve the use of dangerous structures or other processes or materials, hazardous to health or safety of building workers and employees during the course of erection, operation and execution as the case may be.
It shall also be the duty of the professionals, involved in designing the buildings structures or other construction projects, to take into account the safety aspects associated with the maintenance and upkeep of the structures and buildings where maintenance and upkeep may involve such hazards as may be notified by the appropriate Government.
Notice of certain accident, dangerous occurrences, certain diseases
Where at any place in an establishment, an accident occurs which causes death, or which causes any bodily injury by reason of which the person injured is prevented from working for a period of forty-eight hours or more immediately following the accident or which is of such nature as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government, then, employer or owner or agent or manager of such establishment if it is mine; or employer or manager in relation to such establishment if it is factory or relates to dock work; or the employer of a plantation or an establishment relating to building or other construction or any other establishment, should send notice to such authorities, in such manner and within such time, in the prescribed manner.
Where a notice given relates to an accident causing death in a plantation or an establishment relating to building or other construction work or any other establishment, the authority to whom the notice is sent should make an inquiry into the occurrence within two months of the receipt of the notice or if there is no such authority, the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator shall cause the Inspector-cum-Facilitator to make an inquiry within the said period.
Where in an establishment there is any dangerous occurrence of such nature, (whether causing any bodily injury or disability, or not) the employer should send notice thereof to such authorities, and in such form and within such time, in the prescribed manner.
Where any worker in an establishment contracts any disease specified in the Third Schedule, the employer of the establishment should send notice to such authorities, within prescribed timeline in the prescribed manner.
If any qualified medical practitioner attends on a person, who is or has been employed in an establishment, and who is, or is believed by the qualified medical practitioner, to be suffering from any disease specified in the Third Schedule, the medical practitioner should without delay send a report in writing to the office of the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator in the prescribed manner failing which shall be punishable with penalty which may extend to ten thousand rupees.
Duties of employee
Every employee at workplace should:
take reasonable care for the health and safety of himself/herself and of other persons who may be affected by his/her acts or omissions at the workplace;
comply with the safety and health requirements specified in the standards;
co-operate with the employer in meeting the statutory obligations of the employer under this Code;
if any situation which is unsafe or unhealthy comes to his/her attention, as soon as practicable, report such situation to the employer or to the health and safety representative and in case of mine, agent or manager, safety officers or an official for the workplace, who shall report it to the employer in the prescribed manner.
not wilfully interfere with or misuse or neglect any appliance, convenience or other thing provided at workplace for the purpose of securing the health, safety, and welfare of workers;
not do, wilfully and without reasonable cause, anything, likely to endanger himself/herself or others; and
perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government.
Rights of employee
Every employee in an establishment shall have the right to obtain from the employer information relating to employee's health and safety at work and represent to the employer directly or through a member of the Safety Committee as constituted under this Code, if constituted by the employer for such purpose, regarding inadequate provision for protection of the safety or health in connection with the work activity in the workplace,and if not satisfied, to the Inspector-cum-Facilitator.
Where such employee in any workplace has reasonable apprehension that there is a likelihood of imminent serious personal injury or death or imminent danger to health, the employee may bring the same to the notice of his employer directly or through a member of the Safety Committee and simultaneously bring the same to the notice of the Inspector-cum-Facilitator.
The employer or any employee should take immediate remedial action if he/she is satisfied about the existence of such imminent danger and send a report forthwith of the action taken to the Inspector-cum-Facilitator in the manner prescribed.
If the employer is not satisfied about the existence of any imminent danger as apprehended by his employees, he/she shall, nevertheless, refer the matter forthwith to the Inspector-cum-Facilitator whose decision on the question of the existence of such imminent dange
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