Gujarat Govt's Ordinance Allows 12-Hour Workday For Factory Workers, Night Shift For Women
The Factories (Gujarat Amendment) Ordinance, 2025, issued on July 1 by the Labour, Skill Development and Employment department, also permits the employment of women in night shifts under a set of conditions, reported Indian Express.
The ordinance, promulgated and brought into effect at a time while the state assembly is not in session, seeks to provide 'relaxation to the factories to boost economic activities, attract investment in national importance to new projects and generate employment.'
It amends the Section 54 of the Factories Act which allows the state government to notify an increase in daily working hours up to 12 hours, including rest intervals, subject to a maximum of 48 hours in any week.
It adds that the increased hours depend on the written consent of the worker.
The amended Section 54 also allows the state to extend, through notification, the number of continuous working hours without interval from five to six.
According to the ordinance, workers will get overtime wages at twice the ordinary rate and it also ordinance increases the quarterly cap on overtime hours from the existing 75 to 125, subject to the worker's written consent.
The ordinance permits employment of women in night shifts from 7 pm to 6 am subject to 16 conditions such as mandatory preventive measures against sexual harassment, proper lighting and CCTV coverage in and around the workplace, a minimum batch size of 10 women workers per shift, deployment of female security personnel, and provision of safe transportation.
It adds that no woman worker shall be compelled to work night shifts and that written consent will be required from those willing to opt in night shifts.
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