Lok Sabha Question No. 5114 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-04
Subject: Jobs in Media, Factories, Industries, Malls
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: Malook Nagar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5114

TO BE ANSWERED ON 04 TH  APRIL, 2022

## JOBS IN MEDIA, FACTORIES, INDUSTRIES, MALLS

## 5114.  SHRI MALOOK NAGAR:

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

- (a) whether the Government has formulated any scheme to provide jobs to those  employees,  who  were  working  in  the  companies,  factories, industries, malls, markets etc and medical persons who were rendered jobless during COVID-19 and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether  the  Government  proposes  to  bring  a  new  law  for  their protection and provide any kind of financial assistance to them; and
- (c) whether the Government has enacted any law for the employees and labourers  who  have  not  received  their  full  wages  yet  and  if  so,  the details thereof and if not, whether the Government is formulating any policy in this regard?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI RAMESWAR TELI)

(a)  to  (c):  The  Government  of  India  has  announced  Aatmanirbhar  Bharat package to provide stimulus to business and to mitigate the adverse impact of Covid 19. Under this package, the Government is providing fiscal stimulus of  more  than  Rs.  Twenty  Seven  lakh  crore.  This  package  comprises  of various  long  term  schemes/  programmes/  policies  for  making  the  country self-reliant and to create employment opportunities.

Aatmanirbhar  Bharat  Rojgar  Yojana  (ABRY)  has  been  launched  with effect from 1st October, 2020 as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat package 3.0 to incentivize  employers  for  creation  of  new  employment  along  with  social security  benefits  and  restoration  of  loss  of  employment  during  Covid-19 pandemic. This scheme being implemented through the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), seeks to reduce the financial burden of the  employers  and  encourages  them  to  hire  more  workers.  The  terminal date for registration of beneficiaries has been extended from 30.06.2021 to 31.03.2022. Benefits have been provided to 54.67 lakh beneficiaries through 1.38 lakh establishments in till 26.03.2022.

Government had launched the Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan (GKRA) of 125 days on 20th June, 2020 to boost employment  and livelihood opportunities  for  returnee  migrant  workers  and  similarly  affected  persons including youth in rural areas, in 116 selected districts across 6 States of Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

Pradhan  Mantri  Mudra  Yojana  (PMMY)  is  being  implemented  by  the Government  for  facilitating  self-employment.  Under  PMMY,  collateral  free loans  upto  Rs.  10  lakh,  are  extended  to  micro/small  business  enterprises and  to  individuals  to  enable  them  to  setup  or  expand  their  business activities.

PM GatiShakti is a transformative approach for economic growth and sustainable development. The approach is driven by seven engines, namely, Roads, Railways, Airports, Ports, Mass Transport, Waterways, and Logistics Infrastructure. This approach is powered by Clean Energy and Sabka Prayas leading to huge job and entrepreneurial opportunities for all.

The Government has put emphasis on railways, roads, urban transport, power,  telecom,  textiles  and  affordable  housing  amid  continued  focus  on the  National  Infrastructure  Pipeline.  Budget  2021-22  launched  Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes, with an outlay of Rs. 1.97 lakh crore, for a period of 5 years starting from 2021-22. All these initiatives are expected to collectively generate employment and boost output in the medium to long term through multiplier-effects.

The  Government  of  India  is  encouraging  various  projects  involving substantial  investment  and  public  expenditure  on  schemes  like  Prime Minister's  Employment  Generation  Programme  (PMEGP)  of  the  Ministry  of Micro,  Small  &  Medium  Enterprises,  Mahatma  Gandhi  National  Rural Employment  Guarantee  Scheme  (MGNREGS),  Pt.  Deen  Dayal  Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) of the Ministry of Rural Development,  Deen  Dayal  Antodaya  Yojana-National  Urban  Livelihoods Mission  (DAY-NULM)  of  the  Ministry  of  Housing  &  Urban  Affairs  etc.  for employment generation.

Besides these initiatives, various flagship programmes of the Government such as Make in India, Start-up India, Digital India, Smart City Mission, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation, Housing for All, Infrastructure Development  and  Industrial Corridors are also oriented towards generating employment opportunities.

The  unemployment  benefit  under  the  Atal  Beemit  Vyakti  Kalyan Yojana being implemented by the Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has been enhanced to 50% from 25% of the average wage, payable upto  90  days,  along  with  relaxation  of  eligibility  conditions  to  claim  the benefit.

The  four  Labour  Codes  viz.  Code  on  Wages;  Occupational  Safety, Health  and  Working  Conditions  Code;  Industrial  Relation  Code  and  Social Security Code  which  have  been  passed  by  the  Parliament inter-alia envisages timely payment of wages to all workers, provision of appointment letter  and  extension  of  social  security,  safety,  health  and  other  welfare provisions to ensure a larger safety net for workers.

The Code on Wages, 2019, provides for universal minimum wage and floor  wage  across  employments  in  organized  and  unorganized  sector  and the  existing  provision,  under  the  Minimum  Wages  Act,  1948  to  restrict applicability  of  minimum  wages  to  Scheduled  employments,  has  been dispensed with under the Code. The Code mandates the Central Government to fix floor wage applicable across the Central and the State sphere. The Code stipulates that the minimum rates of wages fixed by the appropriate  Government  shall  not  be  less  than  the  floor  wage.  The  said provisions of the Code on Wages, 2019, have not come into force yet.

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