Page 101 - Labor

'Small number' of people impacted by global reorganisation: Amazon

Global e-commerce giant Amazon today said its efforts to better organise its teams has impacted "a small number of employees" in India but asserted that it continues to hire and has about 4,000 positions open in the country. The comments come amid reports that the company has laid off 60 people in India as part of a global restructuring, and that more employees could be handed the pink slip in the coming days. The company has contested the claims saying "reports stating 60 people (being fired) is factually incorrect and overstated". "As a global organisation, we have recognised the need to more organise our teams to keep us agile and help us use our resources optimally. This has impacted a small number of roles within the company," an Amazon India spokesperson said in an emailed statement. The spokesperson added that the company is providing complete support to the impacted employees, including the option of relevant internal postings and outplacement services. "We would like to add ..

Over 36% MGNREGA works incomplete in Assam since 2006-07

Over 36 per cent of the 4,14,551 works under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) are incomplete in Assam since 2006-07 when the scheme was launched, the Assembly was informed today. Replying to a query by AGP MLA Phani Bhusan Choudhury, Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Naba Kumar Doley said a total of 4,14,551 works have been initiated till now from the commencement of the Act in the state. "Out of that, 2,64,976 works have been completed and 1,49,575 are yet to complete. Works in 4,497 incomplete jobs under MGNREGA remained stopped," Doley said. The minister also informed the House that Rs 76.67 crore to be given to the villagers as wages was due from the central government. "As soon as the Centre releases the amount for wages, it will be directly deposited to the accounts of the labourers," he added. Doley said the Centre has till now released Rs 9,264.97 crore since launch of the MGNREGA in the state, out of which Rs 9,195.15 crore

Six S African miners killed in bus attack

Six miners were killed in South Africa's northern province of Limpopo when a suspected petrol bomb was thrown into their bus, police said today, adding no motive was known for the attack. "The bus immediately caught fire, instantly killing six people on board and injuring several others," police said in a statement. The bus was carrying night-shift workers to a platinum mine yesterday when it was attacked outside the town of Burgersfort. The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) called for police to investigate and arrest those responsible, saying there had been a number of recent violent incidents in the area. "The bus was carrying 39 workers who were going to work at Modikwa Platinum Mine when it was petrol-bombed," NUM official Phillip Mankge said. "Six workers were burned beyond recognition and the other workers had to escape through windows. "We also do not know what is the motive of the attack on those innocent workers who were going to work.

French rail workers begin nationwide strike

Employees of France's state-owned rail company SNCF on Tuesday began a three-month strike over President Emmanuel Macron's reform plans.

WB tops employment generation in rural areas

West Bengal has emerged as the number one state in the country in terms of employment generation in the rural areas, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said. The state has generated 30.98 crore person days under the 100 days work scheme till March 31, 2018, she tweeted. "I am very happy to share with all of you that Bengal has emerged No.1 in the country in rural employment generation. Under 100 days work scheme, as on 31 March 2018, Bengal has generated 30.98 crore person-days, which is the highest in the country," Banerjee tweeted this afternoon. "Moreover, West Bengal reported expenditure of Rs. 8007.56 Crore under this scheme in 2017-18, which is again the highest in the country," she added. "In terms of average person-days per household, West Bengal with 59 days in 2017-18, is the best performer among the major states," her tweet read.

Officers don't work easily, it takes a lot of prodding: Kejriwal

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today said it was not easy to get officers to work and suggested traders to follow up with him for construction of roads in Loha Mandi at the Naraina industrial area. During a visit to Loha Mandi, Kejriwal said his government will build roads in a time-bound manner, provided a 'No-objection Certificate' was fetched from civic bodies by the traders. "You will have to follow up with me till the roads are built. These officers do not work easily. It takes a lot of prodding," he said. The government will repair the roads that were in bad shape if the NoC is obtained as it comes under MCD, he said. Kejriwal said he believed in the teachings of the Gita and requested the traders to give minimum wages to workers employed by them. "After death, only your Karma accompanies you. So, if you make them happy, it will go with you," he said. The chief minister said the minimum wages were raised from Rs 9,000 to Rs 13,500 per month but it was not being paid to the

Wife of Mosul victim demands employment

Wife of a Mosul victim on Monday demanded employment.Manjeet Kaur, wife of Davinder Singh, who was among 39 Indians killed in Mosul, told ANI that "we hope that the government gives us employment so that I can survive and educate my children".She also lamented that her husband's mortal remains came back instead of him"We had faith in the government as it promised to bring my husband back, but what have come today are his mortal remains," Manjeet Kaur said.It was on March 20, when External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj in the Rajya Sabha informed the Parliament that 39 Indian nationals, who went missing in Mosul in 2014, were killed by the terror outfit Islamic State (IS).The 39 persons, most of whom hailed from Punjab, were working on projects near Mosul when they got kidnapped.The mortal remains of 38 Indians killed by the Islamic State in Mosul, Iraq in 2014 arrived here on Monday afternoon on an IAF C17 aircraft.Union Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh ...

ADB, India Sign $80 Million Loan to Help Boost Youth Employability in Himachal

Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary (Multilateral Institutions), Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, signed the loan agreement for the Government of India, and Kenichi Yokoyama, ADB Country Director in India, signed on behalf of ADB.

Strike against Centre's labour policy hits life in Kerala

The general strike called by various trade unions demanding rollback of a central government order allowing fixed-term employment across all sectors, affected normal life in the state today. Most of the shops and business establishments remained shut. The commuters faced problems as public transports including the state-owned KSRTC and private bus operators, besides taxis and auto-rickshaws stayed off road. The people who arrived at different railway stations across the state had a difficult time in undertaking their onward journey. The police, however, had made arrangements at some places to help the stranded passengers. No untoward incident has been reported from any part of the state so far, the police said. The offices of both the central and state governments witnessed thin attendance. The functioning of banks was also affected due to the strike. The strike called by 16 trade unions under the banner of Joint Trade Unions began last midnight and would end tonight. The agitating ...

'Government should provide employment to Iraq victims families'

Gurpinder Kaur, the sister of Majinder Singh, one of the 39 Indians who were killed in Iraq, said the Government of India must provide jobs to the families of the deceased so that they can manage their survival.Speaking to ANI, Kaur said the government should also provide employment opportunities in Punjab so that people do not have to go to foreign nations."Initially, we were waiting for them but for the past 10 days, we have been waiting for their mortal remains. All we now hope and expect the government to do is give employment to the families of the deceased so that they can manage their survival," she said.Her remarks come as the families in Bhoewal village of Punjab await mortal remains of the killed persons, who went to work in Iraq.The mortal remains of the 39 Indians will on Monday reach Amritsar in Punjab through a special aircraft.Kaur also said tough action must be taken against unregistered agents who cheat people and send them wrongly to such nations.Singh's father, ...

MP to create 1 lakh govt jobs, abolish contractual employment: CM

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said today his government would create one lakh jobs in various departments and abolish the contractual employment system soon. He also said that the retirement age of employees of government departments, civic bodies, corporations and courts would be raised to 62 years from the current 60. The announcements come at a time when state Assembly elections are slated for later this year and data tabled in the House recently showed only 19,226 jobs were created in government departments in 14 years of BJP rule. "The contractual employment system is unjust. And it is going to be abolished (in government departments)," he told representatives of employees' unions who had called on him at his residence in Bhopal. He, however, did not give a time frame for the abolition but stated that a meeting with contractual employees would be convened soon. Chouhan said one lakh jobs would be generated in various government departments. Recruitment of ...

Centre releases 3 months' salaries of paper mill staff

The Centre has released three months' salary for the employees of Hindustan Paper Corp's defunct Nagaon and Cachar paper mills amidst attempt to revive the units, an official release said. "Following the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Ministry for Heavy Industries & Public Sector Enterprises released three months' salary of the employees of Nagaon Paper Mill at Jagiroad and Cachar Paper Mill at Panchgram," a release from Assam Chief Minister's Office said. It, however, did not mention the months. The Centre has released the fund for paying the due salaries of the employees working at the two paper mills of the state, the statement added. "On the other hand, the process of revival for the paper mills has also started," the release issued last night, said. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has been pursuing the matter with the Centre and held discussions with the Prime Minister and Union Minister for Heavy Industries Anand Geete for releasing ...

Normal life may be hit in Kerala tomorrow due to strike

Normal life in Kerala is expected to be affected tomorrow in view of a 24-hour general strike called by various trade unions demanding rollback of a central government order allowing fixed term employment across sectors. The strike call given by 16 trade unions under the banner of United Trade Union will begin tonight, CITU State President Anathalavattom Anandan said in a statement. Employees of the state and central government offices such as banks and BSNL are expected to take part in the stir. Public transport vehicles including state-owned KSRTC buses will stay off the roads tomorrow. CITU, INTUC, AITUC, STU, HMS, UTUC are among the major unions that have joined the protest call. Workers would take out protest demonstrations in different places across the state as part of the agitation against the new labour law of the Centre. The Centre had amended the Industrial Employment (Standing Order) Central Rules, 1946, through a gazette notification on March 16 that virtually gives the ..

MP job scene bad, claims Oppn; govt says focus on skill devp,

Job creation has picked up pace in Madhya Pradesh in the last three years after remaining sluggish for a decade and the state government has said it is focusing on entrepreneurship and imparting skills to the youth to deal with the issue of unemployment. However, the opposition Congress has claimed the job scenario in the state, which goes to the polls by the year- end, is bad. Official data showed on an average only 17,600 jobs have been created every year in the past 14 years of the BJP rule in the state. The data was provided in response to a query asked by Congress MLA Ram Niwas Rawat during the recently concluded budget session of the Assembly. On an average 17,615 jobs were generated every year in public, private and cooperative sectors in the last 14 years (from 2014 to 2017), according to the figures. The state government has drawn flak from unemployed youths for raising the retirement age of its employees to 62 from 60 years now, saying this will reduce ...

To investigate allegations on deviation from 'pat down' search SOPs: SpiceJet

Budget carrier SpiceJet on Saturday said the random "pat down" search conducted on various employees, including cabin crew, from time to time was as per security and safety SOPs (standard operating procedures) and that the allegations regarding deviation from these SOPs are being investigated.

How to create a happy workplace

Professional environment and happy employees leads to higher productivity of the organization hence its important to create a happy working environment in order to achieve the desired goal.

Air France, lawyers strike as Macron labour woes grow

French lawyers staged a walkout today while Air France staff went on strike over pay, adding to a growing wave of industrial unrest that threatens to slow President Emmanuel Macron's reform drive. Air France cancelled a quarter of the day's flights as its pilots, stewards and ground crew press for a six per cent pay rise. And courts postponed hearings as hundreds of lawyers, clerks and magistrates stopped work across the country to protest judicial reforms, among a slew of changes by the ambitious 40-year-old president riling various sections of French society. "The government's plan at least has the benefit of being coherent -- scrimping, cutting, sacrificing everything it can," legal profession unions said in a joint statement ahead of protests Friday afternoon. Law unions complain that the court shake-up, which aims to streamline penal and civil proceedings and digitise the court system, will result in courts that are over-centralised and "dehumanised". They particularly object to .

Govt notifies law for doubling tax-free gratuity to Rs 20 lakh

The government has notified a legislation that double tax-free gratuity for formal sector employees to Rs 20 lakh. The Payment of Gratuity (Amendment) Bill, 2018, which was passed by the Lok Sabha on March 15 and by the Rajya Sabha on March 22, has been brought in force on March 29 after assent from the President, an official statement said today. "This will ensure harmony amongst employees in the private sector and in Public Sector Undertakings/ Autonomous Organizations under Government who are not covered under CCS (Pension) Rules. These employees will be entitled to receive higher amount of gratuity at par with their counterparts in Government sector," it said. Earlier, the upper ceiling on gratuity amount under the act was Rs 10 lakh. With implementation of 7th Central Pay Commission, the ceiling was raised to Rs 20 lakh for the central government employees effective January 1, 2016. In addition, the Bill also envisaged to amend the provisions relating to calculation of continuous

MP to raise retirement age for govt employees to 62 years

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today announced raising the retirement age of state government employees to 62 years from the current 60 years. He made the announcement while speaking to reporters here today. He, however. did not disclose details of this decision. There are about five lakh regular government employees in the state. The opposition Congress, accusing the government of "deceiving" the state's unemployed youth by increasing the retirement age, demanded that such youth be given a "berozgari bhatta" (unemployment allowance). Replying to a question on the Supreme Court's order related to the promotion of state government employees. Chouhan said, "Several state government employees are not able to get promotion due to the apex court's order in a case related to 'reservation in promotion' pending with the SC. We will not allow any employee to retire without him getting his due promotion. This is why we have decided to increase the ...

CPI-M opposes new labour laws

The CPI-M on Friday denounced the government move to introduce fixed contractual jobs all across the private sector.