MP’s new ‘pro-business’ labour laws draw flak
● PROVISIONS have been made to ensure registration of new industries in one day. The prevailing system of annual renewal of license for industries has been scrapped, with introduction of provision that any licensing renewal would not be needed for ten years.
Workers’ unions slammed the sweeping reforms brought in the labour laws by the Madhya Pradesh government, dubbing it “anti-employee and undemocratic.”
The unions feared that the measures would not only snatch democratic rights of the workers but also shrink employment opportunities in the state.
“Workers will be denied the fundamental right to register opposition to any kind of exploitative measures by the industries since certain provisions in the Labour Act are being done away with,” said Laxminarayan Sharma, general secretary of Madhya Pradesh Class Three Employees Association on Monday.
He regretted that instead of strengthening interests of workers in the amended Labour Act, the state government tried to trample upon their fundamental rights. “The anti-worker measures are mulled at a time when lakhs of labourers in the country have been rendered jobless following closure of industries during the lockdown period,” he lamented.
Socialist leader and former minister Raja Pateria also echoed similar concerns and warned that the reforms in labour laws would be detrimental to the interest of economy of the country.
“The reforms would give official sanction to bonded labourer system since the workers would lose the right to protest any unfair practice by the industries. The country’s economy will be harmed following the reforms which will help promote low cost productions,” the senior Congress leader observed.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh
Chouhan recently announced a range of wide labour reforms to attract investments to the state in the wake of reports of flight of investments from China in the aftermath of outbreak of Coronavirus in that country.
“We must turn the challenge of the pandemic to opportunity by attracting investments to the state by creating a pro-business environment,” he said while unveiling the labour reforms.
Accordingly, provisions have been made to ensure registration of new industries in one day.
The prevailing system of annual renewal of license for industries has been scrapped, with introduction of provision that any licensing renewal would not be needed for ten years.
All shops in the state can now remain open in the state from six in the morning to 12 in the night to give a 18-hour operating window to boost employment opportunities as well as help promote social distancing during Covid-19 crisis, a spokesman of state government here said.