Lok Sabha Question No. 3013 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-12-31
Subject: Social Security to Contract Labourers
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: S.P. MUDDAHANUMEGOWDA, B.V. NAYAK

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3013 TO BE ANSWERED ON 31.12.2018

## SOCIAL SECURITY TO CONTRACT LABOURERS

3013. SHRI S.P. MUDDAHANUME GOWDA: SHRI B.V. NAIK:

Will the Minister of LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT be pleased to state:

- (a)whether the Ministry has taken any steps or is considering any draft to provide social security to contract workers/labourers and unemployed people  across  the  country  so  that  their  sense  of  insecurity  could  be mitigated;
- (b)if so, the details thereof along with the progress made in this regard;
- (c)whether the Ministry proposes to provide facilities to contract workers/ labourers  by  bringing  them  under  the  International  Convention  of Social, Economic and Cultural Rights, 1996;
- (d)if so, the details thereof and the time by which it is likely to be done and if not, the reasons therefor; and
- (e)whether  the  Ministry  has  any  data  regarding  the  number  of  contract workers/labourers in the country and if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE (IC) FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI SANTOSH KUMAR GANGWAR)

- (a) &  (b): In order to provide  social security benefits to  contract workers/labourers  and  to  regulate  employment  of  contract  labour,  the Central Government is implementing the Contract Labour (Regulation and

Abolition) Act, 1970. The Act applies to every establishment in which 20 or more workmen are employed. These workers avail social security and other  benefits  under  the  Employees'  Compensation  Act  (1923),  the Employees' State Insurance Act (1948), the Industrial Dispute Act (1947), the  Minimum  Wages  Act  (1948),  the  Provident  Funds  Act  (1925),  the Employees Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act (1952), the Maternity Benefit Act (1961), the Payment of Gratuity Act (1972), etc. as per their eligibility. Moreover, improvement/amendment in various labour laws is a continuous process based on changing needs and demands of stakeholders and exhaustive tripartite consultations.

As regards to unemployed people in the country, the Government  runs  various  employment  generation  schemes  like  Prime Minister's  Employment  Generation  Programme  (PMEGP)  implemented  by Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme  (MGNREGA),  Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) scheme run by Ministry of  Rural Development, and Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana- National Urban Livelihoods  Mission  (DAY-NULM)  implemented  by  Ministry  of  Housing  & Urban Affairs.

Further, the schemes of Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) and    Pradhan  Mantri  Rojgar  Protsahan  Yojana  promote  employment generation.  Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) provides collateral free loans  by  Banks,  Non-Banking  Financial  Companies  (NBFCs)  and  Micro agricultural sector to individuals to enable them to setup or expand their

Finance Institutions (MFIs) to small/micro business enterprises in the nonbusiness activities.

Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana has been initiated by the Ministry of Labour and Employment in the year 2016-17 for incentivizing employers for promoting employment generation. Under this scheme, Government is paying the entire employer's contribution (12 % or

as admissible) towards the EPS and EPF for all sectors w.e.f. 01.04.2018 to all eligible new employees and is applicable for all sectors for the next 3 years.

In  order  to  improve  the  employability  of  youth,  around  22 Ministries/Departments  run  skill  development  schemes  across  various sectors.

The Government is implementing the National Career Service (NCS) Project which comprises of a digital portal that provides a nationwide online platform for jobseekers and employers for job matching in a dynamic, efficient and responsive manner and has a repository of career content.

(c)  &  (d):    Since  1979,  India  is  a  party  to  the  International  Covenant  on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), 1966.

(e): The total number of contract labour employed in establishments  in  the  Central  Sphere  during  the  last  three  years  is  as under:

|   Year |   Number of Contract Labour |
|--------|-----------------------------|
|   2016 |                      964001 |
|   2017 |                     1110603 |
|   2018 |                     1178878 |

*******