Karnataka Assembly passes Bill to hike paid leaves

The Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Wednesday passed a Bill that increases the number of annual paid leaves from 30 days to 45 days for employees working in shops and commercial establishments.

Piloting the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments (Second Amendment) Bill, Labour Minister Shivaram Hebbar said it was a “pro-worker” move. The Bill will now go to the Legislative Council.

The minister specified that this Bill will be applicable to the private sector as well. It will apply to those working in commercial establishments such as malls, hotels, restaurants and theatres.

“We have thought this through. We discussed this with owners of shops and commercial establishments,” Hebbar said. “In Maharashtra, the number of paid leaves is 45 days, in Andhra Pradesh it is 65 days, Tamil Nadu 45 days, Gujarat 63 days and Madhya Pradesh 90 days. We considered this before proposing this amendment,” he added.

“Another change we have made is to allow leaves of employees to be carried forward to the next year. At present, employees are required to avail their leaves in the same year,” Hebbar said. “This will also provide an additional 15 days of leave and pay for those who retire, die at work or those who are fired.”

Congress’ Jamkhandi MLA Anand Nyamagouda wondered if the provision to carry forward leaves will impact businesses that are seasonal in nature. “Let’s say 45 days of this year is added to 45 days of the next, we’re looking at 90 days or three months of leave,” he said.

Last year, the state government amended the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act to allow women to work in night shifts. And last month, the government allowed all shops and commercial establishments employing ten or more persons to function round-the-clock.