Chapter 4: EMPLOYEES FAMILY WELFARE AND MEDICAL

EMPLOYEES’ STATE INSURANCE ACT, 1948 Applicability 1) All factories excluding seasonal factories employing 10 or more persons and working with electric power. 2) All factories excluding seasonal factories employing 20 or more persons and working without electric power. 3) Any establishment which the Government may specifically notify as being covered. 4) Shop employing 20 or more persons. Note: As soon as the above conditions are fulfilled the employer should furnish the details in Form-01 to ESI office for registration under the ESI Act, 1948 & Obtaining of the employer’s Code No.

Eligibility 1) Any person employed for wages (up to Rs. 6,500) in or in connection with the work of a factory or establishment end. 2) Any person who is directly employed by the employer in a factory or through his agent on work which is ordinarily part of the work of the factory or incidental to purpose of the factory.

Benefits 1) Free medical treatment is offered to covered employees at hospital and dispensaries run by the ESI Corporation. 2) About 7/12th of employees normal wage will be payable to him by ESI during sickness. 3) Maternity benefit for 12 weeks of which not more than 6 weeks should be preceding confinement. 4) Injury during/in course of employment resulting in temporary/permanent disablement entitles the covered employee to a regular payment to substitute his lost wages. 5) Death during course of employment entitles specified dependents to a regular payment. 6) Onetime payment of Rs. 1,500 to help meet funeral expenses.

Penal Provisions 1) For employees’ contribution: Imprisonment for minimum 2 yrs. to maximum 5 yrs. and/or fine of Rs. 25,000/- . 2) For employer’s contribution: Imprisonment for minimum 6 months to maximum 3 yrs. and/or fine of Rs. 10,000/- . OTHER BENEFITS Supply of special aids : Insured persons and members of their families are provided artificial limbs, hearing aids, artificial dentures, spectacles (for insured person only) & artificial appliances like spinal supports, cervical collars, walking calipers, crutches, wheel chairs and cardiac pace makers, dialysis/dialysis with kidney transplant etc. as part of medical care under the ESI Scheme. RECORDS TO BE KEPT READY FOR ESI INSPECTION 1. Attendance Register/Muster Roll. 2. Salary/Wage Register/Payroll. 3. EC (Employee’s & Employer’s Contribution) Statement. 4. Employees’ Register U/R 32 (Form 7). 5. Accident Register U/R 66. 6. Return of Contribution (RC-Form 6). 7. Return of Declaration Forms (RDF - Form 3). 8. Receipted Copies of Challans. 9. Books of Account i.e. Cash/Bank, Expense Register, Sales/Purchase Register, Petty Cash Book, Ledger, Supporting Bills and Vouchers, Delivery Challans (if any). Employees’ Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 Applicability i) Every establishment which is a factory engaged in any industry specified in Schedule 1 and in which 20 or more persons are employed and ii) Any other establishment employing 20 or more persons which Central Government may, by notification, specify in this behalf. (Infancy period of 3 years has been withdrawn by ordinance w.e.f.22-9-97) iii) Any establishment employing even less than 20 persons can be covered voluntarily u/s 1(4) of the Act. Eligibility Any person who is employed for work of an establishment or employed through contractor in or in connection with the work of an establishment. Benefits Employees covered enjoy a benefit of Social Security in the form of an unattachable, unwithdrawable (except employees and employers contribute equally throughout the covered person’s employment. This sum is payable normally on retirement or death. Other Benefits include Employes’ Pension Scheme and Employee’s Deposit Linked insurance Fund Penal Provisions Likely to be arrested without warrant for being a cognizable offense. Defaults by employer in paying contributions or inspection/ administration charges attract imprisonment up to 3 years and fines up to Rs. 10,000 (S.14.) For any retrospective application, all dues have to be paid by employer with damages up to 100% of arrears. Benefits at a glance 1.   Advance for Purchase of Dwelling Site. 2.   Advance for Purchase of Dwelling House/flat. 3.   Advance for Construction of a House. 4.   Advance for Repayment of housing loan to State Govt. housing board or any other govt. recognized housing finance body. 5.   Advance for Illness viz. Hospitalization for more than month, major surgical operations or suffering from TB, leprosy, paralysis, cancer, heart ailment etc. 6.   Advance for Marriage of Self/Son/Daughter/Sister/Brother. 7.   Advance for Post Matriculation Education of Son/Daughter. 8.   Advance for Damage to the property Due to Natural calamity (Flood Riot/Earthquake). 9.   Advance for Member affected by cut in the supply of electricity. 10. Advance for Member who is physically handicapped.  [ A member employee can also withdraw full amount standing to his credit.   In fund (Para 69).....] a) on Resignation. b) On Retirement from the service on attaining the age of 58 or 60 yrs. c) On Retirement on account for permanent or total incapacity to work. d) Immediately before Migration from India for permanent settlement abroad or for taking up     employment abroad. e) On Termination due to voluntary retirement Scheme, retrenchment, closure of the factory/establishment. Employees’ Pension Scheme, 1995 1. DEFINITION Employees’ Pension Scheme is Pension Scheme for survivors, old aged and disabled persons. The earlier Family Pension Scheme, 1971 offered only one type of benefit, namely, survivor’s benefit, i.e. (payment of pension to widow/widower on death of the member in service. On the other hand, the new scheme caters for three types of contingencies: —      1. Survivor Pension: If death occurs during service period.      2. Old Age Pension: Pension or Superannuation.      3. Permanent Disability: In the event of member suffering permanent disability while in service. EARLY PENSION ON CESSATION OF EMPLOYMENT Old age pension on account of superannuation/retirement is normally payable on attaining the age of 58/60 years. However, member can opt for taking earlier than 58 years on his exit from employment but under no circumstances pension will be payable before the age of 50 years. A member who desires to draw monthly pension from a date earlier than 58 years of age will be allowed to draw a monthly reduced pension. The amount of pension in such a case shall be reduced at the rate of 3% for every year the age falls short of 58 years.  SCHEME CERTIFICATE There are occasions when a member may leave employment and or may move from a covered establishment to an uncovered establishment before he reaches the date of superannuation, he may opt for a Scheme Certificate. The certificate will indicate his pensionable salary and the amount of pension due on the date of exit from employment. If the member is subsequently employed in a covered establishment. his pensionable service in the scheme certificate will be taken into account for working out his full pensionable service.  WIDOW PENSION 5.1 Widow pension is of three categories — one of death of the member during service, second on the death of the member after leaving service but before attaining the age of 58 years and the third in case of death of the member after commencement of payment of monthly members pension. 5.2 Widow pension on death of the member during the service is equal to monthly members pension. 5.3 The essential conditions for grant of widow pension are as follows:- 5.3a. The death of the member occurred while in service. 5.3b. The member has contributed at least one month’s contribution. 5.3c. The member had not attained the age of 58 years. 5.3.d. The death of the member had taken place before the commencement of monthly members pension. Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 Applicability (a)  Every factory (as def. in Factories Act), & (b) Every other establishment in which 20 or more persons (less than 20 but 10 or more if appropriate Govt. notifies) are employed on any day subject to certain exemptions. ii)  Employees' drawing remuneration of Rs. 3,500/- or more and those who have worked for less than 30 days are not eligible to receive bonus under the Act. iii) Bonus to be paid within eight months from the expiry of the accounting year. Eligibility i)  Every person (other than an apprentice) drawing salary up to RS 3,500 per month. Ii) Every person drawing salary between RS 2,501/- and RS 3,500/- per month. The bonus payable to him is to be calculated as if his salary were RS 2,500/- p.m. Benefits i)  Subject to other provisions :— Minimum bonus shall be 8.33% of salary/wages earned or RS 100 whichever is higher. Ii)  If allocable surplus exceeds the amount of minimum bonus, then bonus shall be payable at higher rate subject to a maximum 20% of salary/wages. Iii) Computation of bonus is to be worked out as per Schedule I to IV of the Act. Penal Provisions    Imprisonment up to 6 months and or fine up to RS 1000/-. Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 Applicability Every factory (as defined in Factories Act), i.e. hotels, mine, oilfield, plantation, port and railway. Every shop or establishment to which Shops & Establishment Act of a State is applied in which 10 or more persons are employed at any time during the year end. Any establishment employing 10 or more persons as may be notified by the Central Government. Once Act applies, it continues to apply even if employment strength falls below 10. Eligibility Any person employed on wages/salary. At the time of retirement or resignation or on superannuation, an employee should have rendered continuous service of not less than five years, In case of death or disablement, the gratuity is payable, even if the concerned person did not completed 5 years of service? Benefits The quantum of gratuity is to be computed at the rate of 15 days wages (7 days wages in case of seasonal establishments) based on rate of wages last drawn by the employee concerned for every completed year of service or a part thereof exceeding 6 months. The total amount of gratuity payable shall not exceed the prescribed limit. In case where higher benefit of gratuity is available under any gratuity scheme of the Co., the employee will be entitled to higher benefit  Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923 •               Applicability Employer includes any person whether incorporated or not and any agent of employer and when services are temporarily lent or let on hire to another person, then means such other person. •               Eligibility Any workman who is injured by accident arising out of and in the course of his employment in specified list of employment contracts any disease specified therein as an occupational disease peculiar to that occupation. •               Benefits: Amount of compensation shall be payable by the employer i)  Where death results from injury 40% of monthly wages x relevant factor or Rs. 20,000/- whichever is more. ii) Where permanent total disablement results from the injury 50% of monthly wages x relevant factor or Rs. 24,000/- whichever is more (relevant factor depends upon the age of a workman) iii) Where permanent, partial disablement or temporary disablement results from injury as per prescribed schedule. •               Penal Provisions Any contract by a worker waiving his right to be compensated under this Act is null and void. Compensation should be paid early–delay beyond 1 month attract interest @ 6% p.a. and penalty of up to 50% of the compensation. Certain other offenses attract fine up to RS 5,000  Leave policy in India (The Family and Medical Leave Act -"FMLA") Leave Schedule • It is necessary that leave/s are scheduled in advance and in a manner that balances both the individual’s desires and hotel’s need for appropriate coverage on teams and departments. • Employees in various departments should schedule leave/s with the approval of their department Manager/ Supervisor. • All other employees should get approval from their supervisor prior to scheduling a leave. • If a scheduling conflict between employee needs and hotel needs arises, hotel may consider its needs, the needs of the employees’ teams, and other relevant factors such as the time period elapsed since an employee’s last leave, the length of the prior leave and the role of the employee requesting a leave. • It is not a certainty that all the leave requests maybe granted, it is strongly recommended by the hotel’s employees to obtain approval for leave plans prior to making travel bookings. • Out of courtesy to co-workers, to notify your Supervisor immediately of any change in leave plans. Earned Leave Eligibility • All regular, full- time employees are eligible for Earned Leave. • Earned Leave is calculated on a month on month basis for the calendar year (January –December) • If you have joined during the middle of the year, your earned leave will be pro-rated from the date you start employment through December 31 of that calendar year. Entitlement • Every month Earned Leave accrues at 13.33 hours per month (equivalent to 1.66 days per month or 160 hours of vacation per calendar year). • During the probation period of 3 months , you are not entitled to take Earned Leave You may avail your Earned leaves only after completing your probation period, at which point you will have accrued 40 (13.33 hours X 3) hours or 5 days. • If you are a Management Trainee, your probation period is 1 year. However you may avail your Earned leaves after completing 3 months of service with the organization, at which point you will have accrued 40 (13.33 hours X 3) hours or 5 days. • Earned Leave is exclusive of official and weekly holidays. Hence if an employee takes leave during which time a declared holiday or weekend occurs, then those particular date(s) will not be counted as your Earned Leave. • Earned leave can be clubbed with Casual Leave. Accumulation/ Carry forward • You are urged to use your Earned Leave time in the year it has accrued. • However, if you are unable to use all of your accrued Earned Leave during a calendar year, you may elect to carry forward any accrued but unused vacation time into the next calendar year, subject to the maximum accrual level of 240 hours (30 working days). Hence you can accumulate/ carry forward your earned leaves up to a maximum of 30 days only. Leave in Excess of Entitlements This is normally not permitted. However, should there be a need, the employee must apply for the same with full details of the need / reason and the same will be decided on a case to case basis and may be treated as leave with or without pay, purely at the discretion of the Management. This shall require specific approval from the concerned Departmental Heads and HR. The Company may, notwithstanding reason advanced by employee, refuse leave in excess of entitlement in its absolute discretion. Encashment Accumulated leaves can be encashed during the time of separation. The formula used for calculation of Encashable Leaves is: Encashable Amount = Monthly Gross (excluding retirals)/ 22* Encashable Leave Adjustment against notice period Balance earned leaves cannot be adjusted against the notice period during termination of services Process To avail earned leave, the employee is required to get his/ her manager’s approval. • Earned leave must be recorded accurately as “Vacation”. • Current earned leave balance and utilized leave will be reflected in the payslip on a month on month basis Casual Leave Eligibility • All regular, full- time employees are eligible for Casual Leave. • Casual Leave is calculated annually for the calendar year (January-December) • If you have joined during the middle of the year, your casual leave will be pro-rated from the date you start employment through December 31 of that calendar year. Entitlement • Casual Leave shall be credited to the employees account at the beginning of the calendar year. New employees are eligible to use Casual Leave immediately upon hire. • Casual leave cannot be clubbed more than 3 at a time. • Casual Leave can be clubbed with Earned Leave. Accumulation • There is no accumulation or carry forward of Casual Leave. Encashment • Casual leave cannot be encashed or adjusted against notice pay at the time of separation. Process • An employee can request for Casual Leave to attend to personal matters. These would be granted at the discretion of the Supervisor. • The employee is required to apply for Casual Leave in advance, unless in case of exigencies where he/she shall submit the leave approval request to the Supervisor within 48 hours of resuming duty. • Casual leave must be recorded accurately in the time sheet as “Time off with pay”. Sick Leave Sick Leave (Medical Leave) Eligibility • All regular, full- time employees at Hotels are eligible for Sick Leave • Sick Leave is calculated annually for the calendar year (January-December) Entitlement • An employee is entitled to 7 days of Sick Leave which shall be credited to the employees account at the beginning of the calendar year. New employees are eligible to use Sick Leave immediately upon hire. • If you have joined in the middle of the year, your Sick leave entitlement will not be pro-rated. The entire Sick Leave of 7 days is granted upon hire. • Sick Leave cannot be clubbed with Earned Leave or Casual Leave. • Sick leave is inclusive of weekly holidays. Accumulation • There is no accumulation or carry forward of Sick Leave. Encashment • Sick leave cannot be encashed or adjusted against notice pay at the time of separation. Process • Sick leave is to be taken in cases of injury / illness to the employee. An employee must intimate his/ her manager either over the phone or on returning from leave. • 2 or more days of Sick Leave will require a medical certificate from a qualified and registered medical practitioner .Notwithstanding such certificate, the company can in its sole discretion ask the employee to present himself / herself before the company Maternity Leave (ML) Eligibility • Maternity leave is a statutory leave .All women employees will be entitled to maternity benefits as per the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 and the prevailing State rules. • Married and expecting women employees are eligible to avail maternity leave. • Women employees who have completed a minimum of 80 days of continuous service with the company are eligible for maternity leave. • If you are on probation, you are entitled to avail maternity leave, provided the above condition is fulfilled. Entitlement • Maternity leave is restricted to two live births during the service with the company • Women employees who have worked for a minimum period of 80 days in the twelve months prior to the delivery shall be entitled to Maternity Leave of up to - 12 weeks in case of delivery - 6 weeks in case of miscarriage, from the date of miscarriage • Under the Act, women employees are eligible for a maximum period of 12 weeks as Maternity Leave and this leave shall not be extended beyond a period of 1 month, without a certificate from a Qualified Medical Practitioner and approval of the HR Personnel. • All leave/s beyond the statutory limit of 12 weeks will be charged to Earned Leave. • Maternity Leave may be clubbed with Sick Leave. Process • The employee should give at least one month's notice prior to the date of commencement of leave. • Maternity leave must be recorded accurately in the Oracle time sheet as “Leave of Absence” • If you are proceeding on leave beyond the stipulated time, you need to get special approval.