MANISH GUPTA
Ranchi, July 19: Private companies in Jharkhand will have to furnish details of all their employees working for a gross monthly pay of up to Rs 40,000 within three months, as per the new law that provides 75 per cent job to state youths in the private sector.
“With the Cabinet approving the rules for the job reservation on Friday, the law has come into effect and all employers have to comply as per the law,” said Neha Arora, Director, Department of Labour, Employment, Training and Skill Development.
The Jharkhand State Employment of Local Candidates in Private Sector Act, 2021, states that: “Every employer shall, register such employees receiving gross monthly salary or wages not more than Rs 40,000 or as the limit notified by the Government, from time to time, on the designated portal, within three months of coming into force of this Act.”
The law further says that every employer will fill up 75 per cent of the total existing vacancies on the date of notification of the Act and subsequent thereto by local candidates with respect to posts where the gross monthly salary or wages are not more than Rs 40,000.
“All employers, employing 10 or more persons, will submit their employee details to the district employment officers who will then analyse the data, and decisions will be taken by the district level committees under the deputy commissioners,” said Arora.
Both the local candidates and employers will have to submit their details on a specially designed portal dedicated for the purpose of registration. No person will be employed or engaged by any employer unless the registration process is completed on the portal.
“There are penal provisions for those who do not comply with the law,” the director said.
A general penalty for any violation of the law is a minimum of Rs 10,000 which may go up to Rs 50,000, and continuation of contravention even after the order of penalty will attract Rs 1,000 per day penalty till the breach continues.
If the companies fail to provide details about their employees who draw up to Rs 40,000 gross salary within the stipulated three months period that ends on October 15, they will be imposed a penalty of Rs 25,000 to Rs 1 lakh. An additional daily penalty of Rs 2,000 will be imposed if the companies do not provide the details even after the penalty order.
Penalty for not following the 75 per cent rule and for not obeying a written order by the deputy commissioner can attract a penalty of anywhere between Rs 50,000 and Rs 2 lakh. Here, the daily penalty will be Rs 5,000 if the breach continues.
If an offence is made under the same provision again the penalty will not be less than Rs 2 lakh but may extend up to Rs 5 lakh, the law states.
If an employer does not pay any penalty imposed on him, the district employment officer can prepare a certificate specifying the amount due and then the deputy commissioner can recover the amount “as if it were an arrear of land revenue under Bihar and Orissa Public Demands Recovery Act, 1914”.
