People and Regulations – Insights: Jan 2024

For the first session of our new quarterly series on ‘People and Regulations – Insights,’ held on Thursday, 18 January 2024, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (IST), our speakers covered key regulatory updates and judicial precedents impacting employers and employees.

The first session covered the following:

1. Standard Operating Procedures issued by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) – (a) for inspection of establishments and (b) for employers with Private Provident Fund Trusts
2. FAQs  issued by the EPFO on higher pension benefit
3. Rationalisation of the EPFO regional offices and creation of new offices to ensure each office does not cover more than 7.5 lakh members
4. Systematic lumpsum withdrawal scheme proposed under the National Pension System (NPS)
5. Regulation of gig workers in Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan
6. Key judicial precedents covering:

• Law requiring 75% domicile quota for employment in Haryana's private sector held as unconstitutional
• Non-linkage of ‘basic wages’ for calculation of Provident Fund contributions with ’minimum wages’
• Relevance of Standing Orders providing service conditions for workmen
• Applicability of statutory benefits (such as maternity rights) for employees on contractual basis
• Importance of principle of natural justice in disciplinary process followed by organizations
• Non-applicability of Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 for apprentices