Report on Kannadiga staffers in pvt sector getting ready

It will form basis for deciding on enforcing Mahishi recommendations

The officers of the Labour department are busy in the last few days, collecting details on the number of jobs provided by industries in their jurisdiction to Kannadigas.

The office of the commissioner of labour, on September 11, issued a circular on the instructions of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on conducting the survey of Kannadigas employed in industries in the State, including the manufacturing and processing sectors.

The information gathered will be compiled district-wise and sector-wise and will be placed before the State Cabinet. The exercise is likely to take two weeks. The status report will form the basis for the Cabinet to take a final decision on implementing the recommendations of the Sarojini Mahishi committee report, which makes it mandatory for earmarking a certain percentage of jobs for Kannadigas in the private sector.

Labour Department Additional Chief Secretary P B Ramamurthy told Deccan Herald that deputy commissioners, the Commerce and Industries Department and the Directorate of Factories, Boilers, Industrial Safety and Health, have been roped in for the information-gathering exercise.

“Certain amount of information is already available. For instance, the C&I department seeks employment details when it provides incentives and sops to industries. Some amount of data on the status of Kannadigas employed in the private sector is available with deputy commissioners who head the district-level single-window agency with powers to clear investment proposals ranging from Rs three crore to Rs 15 crore. We are compiling the data and gathering details that are not available,” Ramamurthy said.

Commissioner for Labour S Vishwanath said all industries employing more than 50 people are being included in the survey. Five joint labour commissioners, 11 assistant commissioners and 41 labour officers are monitoring the exercise. Officials are contacting the human resources units of the industries for details. Any employee whose mother tongue is Kannada or has been living in the State for more than 15 years is considered a Kannadiga, he said.

IT, ITeS in survey
While the Information Technology (IT) and IT-enabled Service (ITeS) companies are being included in the survey, a final decision on whether the Sarojini Mahishi committee recommendations would be made applicable to them will be taken by the Cabinet.

The State government had recently provided exemption from labour legislations to these companies for a further period of five years. The IT and ITeS companies have been enjoying the benefit of exemption of the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946, which governs all service conditions for employees, for the last 12 years. 

According to secretariat sources, the exact quantum of jobs reserved for Kannadigas was not specified in the new Industrial Policy 2014-19, which was cleared by the Cabinet last week.
The percentage of jobs for Kannadigas, if cleared by the Cabinet, will come as an executive order at a later date, the sources said.