The Government of Gujarat (Ministry of Labour & Employment) has enacted the Gujarat Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2019 repealing the Gujarat Shops and Establishments Act, 1948.
The New Act of 2019 is effective from 1st May 2019 .The provisions of the 2019 Act include: Legal Provision Call out Synopsis
Highlights on New Gujarat Shop & Establishment Act 2019
1.
1.Registration –
a) Within 60 days from the date of commencement of Business; the employer of every establishment engaging ten or more workers shall submit in prescribed Form with supporting documents for registration of the establishment as per section 6 of the Act along with the required documents as specified in Part A of the Schedule.
b) The employer of every establishment engaging less than ten workers shall submit an intimation of commencement of the business along with the required documents.
c) A registration certificate issued under sub-section (2) shall remain in force from the date of issue till the change in ownership or nature of business takes place. In case of change in ownership or nature of business, the employer of every establishment shall have to obtain the fresh registration certificate.
d) The employer shall inform, in such form and in such manner, as may be prescribed, to the Inspector within thirty days from the date of closing of the business that the shop or establishment has been closed for business.
2. Leave –
a) Every worker shall be allowed a weekly holiday with wages & every worker shall be entitled to Seven days casual leave with wages in every calendar year which shall be credited into the account of the worker at the beginning of the calendar year, but shall laps if un-availed at the end of the year.
b) Every worker shall be entitled to seven days leave on medical groundswith wages in every calendar year which shall be credited into the account of the worker in the beginning of the calendar year, but shall lapse if un-availed at the end of the year.
c) Every worker who has worked for a period of two hundred and forty days or more in an establishment during a calendar year shall be allowed during the subsequent calendar year, leave with wages for a number of days calculated at the rate of one day for every twenty days of work performed by him during the previous calendar year.
d) Every worker shall be permitted to accumulate earned leave up to a maximum of Sixty Three days.
e) Where the employer refuses to sanction the leave under sub-section (3) which is due when applied fifteen days in advance, then the worker shall have a right to en cash leave in excess of Sixty Three days: Provided that, if a worker is entitled to leave other than causal and festival leave under this section, is discharged by his employer before he has been allowed the leave, or if, having applied for and having been refused the leave, he quits his employment on account of retirement, resignation, death or permanent disability, the employer shall pay him full wages for the period of leave due to him.
a) A worker shall be entitled to eight paid festival holidays in a calendar year, namely, 26th January, 15th August and 2nd October and Five such other festival holidays as may be agreed to between the employer and the workers as per the nature of business, before the commencement of the year. For holiday on these days, he shall be paid wages at a rate equivalent to the daily average of his wages (excluding overtime), which he earns during the month in which such compulsory holidays falls: Provided that, the employer may require any worker to work in the establishment on all or any of these days, subject to the conditions that for such work the worker shall be paid double the amount of the daily average wages and also leave on any other day in lieu of the compulsory holiday.
3. Working Hours –
a) No adult worker shall be required or allowed to work in any establishment for more than nine hours in any day and forty-eight hours in any week. No adult worker shall be asked to work continuously for more than five hours unless he has been given a break of not less than half an hour.
b) No woman worker shall be required or allowed to work in any establishment except between the hours of 6 a.m. and 9-00 p.m. Provided that, the woman worker shall be allowed to work during 9-00 p.m. and 6-00 a.m. in any establishment in which adequate protection of their dignity, honour and safety, protection from sexual harassment and their transportation from the establishment to the doorstep of their residence as may be prescribed are provided by the employer or his authorized representative or manager or supervisor.
c) An establishment may be kept open for business on all days in a week subject to the condition that every worker shall be allowed weekly holiday of at least twenty-four consecutive hours of rest. & If a worker is denied weekly holiday, the compensatory leave in lieu thereof shall be given within two months of such weekly holiday.
4. Crèches –
a) In every establishment wherein Thirty or more workers are employed, there shall be provided and maintained a suitable room or rooms as crèche for the use of children of such workers : Provided that, if a group of establishments, so decide to provide a common crèche within a radius of one kilometre, then, the same shall be permitted by the Inspector, subject to such conditions as may be specified in the order.
5. Overtime –
a) Where a worker in any establishment is required to work beyond nine hours a day or forty-eight hours a week, he shall be entitled, in respect of the overtime work, wages at the rate of twice his ordinary rate of wages. The total number of overtime hours shall not exceed one hundred and twenty five hours in a period of three months.
6. Annual Return.-
The employer of a shop or establishment shall furnish an annual returns, in such a form and in such manner (including in electronic form), to such authority as may be prescribed.
7. Penalties:-
a) Whoever, found running any establishment without registration in contravention of the provisions of section 6 or rules made thereunder, shall be punishable with penalty of ten thousand rupees which shall include registration fees.
b) Whoever contravenes the provisions of this Act or the rules made thereunder shall, if no other penalty is elsewhere provided by or under this Act for such contravention, be punishable with fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees: Provided that, the total amount of fine shall not exceed two thousand rupees per worker employed.
