In Karnataka, the IT firms have submitted a proposal to the Congress-led state government demanding that the laws should be amended to extend employee working hours to 14 hours a day, as per media reports. The proposal was reportedly presented in a meeting called by the Labour Department of various stakeholders. As per reports, the state government is mulling the proposal to extend the working period of techies to 14 hours per day and 70 hours a week. However, the new proposal is facing stiff opposition from employees and IT unions who have described it as “inhuman”.
According to reports, the Congress government is planning to amend the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, 1961 and the IT firms want their proposal to be included in the amendment. They want the state government to legally extend work hours to 14 hours (12 hours + 2 hours of overtime).
Currently, the labour laws permit 9 hours of working day, while an additional hour is allowed as overtime.
The new proposal submitted by the IT firms states, “employees in the IT/ITeS/BPO sector may be required or allowed to work more than 12 hours a day and not exceeding 125 hours in three continuous months”.
As per reports citing sources, the Siddaramaiah government has held an initial meeting on this matter and further decisions will be taken soon. Additionally, the Cabinet is likely to discuss the proposal.
The proposal faces strong opposition
However, employees and IT firms have strongly come out against the proposal claiming that it is “inhuman”. Citing health issues and concerns of mass layoff, they have urged the Siddaramaiah government to turn down the proposal.
The Karnataka State IT/ITeS Employees Union (KITU) has vehemently opposed the move as they think this is “an attempt to impose slavery“. It has called upon all the IT/ITeS sector employees to come in resistance against the Karnataka Government’s move to increase the working hours in the IT/ITES/BPO sector to 14 hours a day.
Karnataka State IT/ITeS Employees Union (KITU) calls upon all the IT/ITeS sector employees to come in resistance against the Karnataka Government move to increase the working hours in IT/ITES/BPO sector to 14 hours a day. #14hrWorkingDay pic.twitter.com/JpAM7Ysa0V
— Karnataka State IT/ITeS Employees Union (@kitu_hq) July 20, 2024
In a statement, the Union said, “The proposed new bill ‘Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments (Amendment) Bill 2024’ attempts to normalize a 14-hour work day. The existing act only allows a maximum of 10 hours of work per day including overtime, which has been completely lifted in the current amendment. It will facilitate the IT/ITES companies to extend the daily hours of work indefinitely.”
According to KITU, this is the biggest-ever attack on the working class in this era as it has warned that the proposal could lead to a layoff of nearly one-third of the workforce. The Union argued that it would allow companies to move towards a two-shift system from the present three-shift system, thus taking away nearly one-third of jobs.
The statement added, “This amendment will allow the companies to go for a two-shift system instead of the currently existing three-shift system and one-third of the workforce will be thrown out of their employment.”
The union also cited studies that point out that extended working hours adversely impact health of the employees.
It said, “As per the report of KCCI, 45% of employees in the IT sector are facing mental health issues such as depression and 55% facing physical health impacts. Increasing working hours will further aggravate this situation.”
It also slammed the state government for treating them as ‘mere machines’ rather than as human beings.
The statement further read, “This amendment shows that the government of Karnataka is not ready to consider workers as human beings who need personal and social life to survive. Instead, it considers them as only a machinery to increase the profit of the corporates whom it serves.”
They have urged CM Siddaramaiah to ‘rethink’ and not implement the demand put forth by IT firms. They have warned that this will be an “open challenge” to the 20 lakh employees working in the IT/ITeS sector in Karnataka and called upon them to unite and oppose this move.
Meanwhile, speaking to The Hindu, Labour Minister Santosh Lad said that the proposal is still in the discussion stage.
He said, “A proposal of extending the work hours to 14 hours has come in. Discussions are still going on the same.”
If the proposal is implemented, it could adversely impact the state capital Bengaluru, which is the IT hub of the country.
The IT firms’ move to extend working hours for techies comes months after Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy proposed that young professionals should work up to 70 hours a week. Back then, his remarks had stirred a hornet’s nest and initiated a fierce debate regarding work-life balance.
