The Opposition in Rajya Sabha attacked the government Tuesday for proposing to increase overtime for factory workers, saying it would open doors to exploitation and reverse the achievements of the labour movement. The House took up the Factories (Amendment) Bill, 2016 for discussion, which seeks to raise the upper limit of overtime from 50 hours per quarter to 100 hours. The bill also enables state governments to permit adult workers to work overtime if the factory has an exceptional workload or in public interest. The Opposition questioned the government's motive for bringing a bill with a few amendments in a hasty manner when the more comprehensive Factories Amendment Bill 2014 is still alive. “This bill is a clear admission that the economy is not doing well and the government has failed to create jobs. The amendments are unacceptable and not in the interest of the economy,” the CPI’s D Raja said. Madhusudan Mistry (Congress) said passage of the draft law would be akin to reversing all gains of the labour movement. “Research shows that if you work more than 60 hours in a week, you become weak. The more you work doesn’t mean the more you produce. We will be driving the country’s workforce towards a slow death,” he said. “They are men and not machines. This bill is an attempt to trap the factory workers in a vicious cycle,” said Ravi Prakash Verma (Samajwadi Party). Supporting the bill, V Vijaysai Reddy (YSR Congress) said industrial growth is being restricted due to stringent laws. However, he expressed concern that the bill could have an adverse impact on job creation as well as on workers’ health and productivity.
