<p>The state government has requested all employers, including the private sector, to be liberal with leaves for staffers who are down with Covid-19 or are under home quarantine. </p>.<p>If any employee unable to work due to Covid-19 does not have leaves left, then employers can use leaves remaining with other employees, Additional Chief Secretary (Labour) Rajkumar Khatri said in an official note. </p>.<p>Khatri also said employers should not consider as ‘unauthorised leave’ the absence of their workers affected by Covid-19. </p>.<p>Khatri’s request to industries and establishments came following a direction from the High Court based on a public interest litigation. </p>.<p>Employees affected by Covid-19 who are not covered under ESI must be allowed to go for quarantining against their available leaves in the interest of the society, Khatri said. </p>.<p>Besides allowing employees to use their leaves to deal with Covid-19, employers should grant ‘special holiday’ in case there are no leaves remaining or if the employers are unable to approve leaves on their own. This can be decided through a consultation between employers and the workers, the note said.</p>.<p>In case an employee has used up all leaves for a particular period, then employers can allow s/he to avail in advance the leaves that may be applied for in the future. </p>.<p>The pro-worker note comes months after the government promulgated an ordinance to liberalise labour laws during the Covid-19 lockdown. </p>.<p>The Industrial Disputes and Certain Other Laws (Karnataka Amendment) Ordinance, would make only those establishments that employ 300 or more persons to seek the government’s permission for closure, retrenchment or layoff. Similarly, worker thresholds will be increased from 10 to 20 in units which use power and from 20 to 40 in factories that do not use power. Also, the overtime work of any quarter will go up from 75 to 125 hours.</p>
<p>The state government has requested all employers, including the private sector, to be liberal with leaves for staffers who are down with Covid-19 or are under home quarantine. </p>.<p>If any employee unable to work due to Covid-19 does not have leaves left, then employers can use leaves remaining with other employees, Additional Chief Secretary (Labour) Rajkumar Khatri said in an official note. </p>.<p>Khatri also said employers should not consider as ‘unauthorised leave’ the absence of their workers affected by Covid-19. </p>.<p>Khatri’s request to industries and establishments came following a direction from the High Court based on a public interest litigation. </p>.<p>Employees affected by Covid-19 who are not covered under ESI must be allowed to go for quarantining against their available leaves in the interest of the society, Khatri said. </p>.<p>Besides allowing employees to use their leaves to deal with Covid-19, employers should grant ‘special holiday’ in case there are no leaves remaining or if the employers are unable to approve leaves on their own. This can be decided through a consultation between employers and the workers, the note said.</p>.<p>In case an employee has used up all leaves for a particular period, then employers can allow s/he to avail in advance the leaves that may be applied for in the future. </p>.<p>The pro-worker note comes months after the government promulgated an ordinance to liberalise labour laws during the Covid-19 lockdown. </p>.<p>The Industrial Disputes and Certain Other Laws (Karnataka Amendment) Ordinance, would make only those establishments that employ 300 or more persons to seek the government’s permission for closure, retrenchment or layoff. Similarly, worker thresholds will be increased from 10 to 20 in units which use power and from 20 to 40 in factories that do not use power. Also, the overtime work of any quarter will go up from 75 to 125 hours.</p>
