Karnataka labour laws: Karnataka on the defensive as its move to increase working hours in technology services sector faces criticism

The Karnataka government’s move to amend the labour laws to extend working hours at technology services companies by up to 14 hours in emergencies has been met with opposition, putting the government on the defensive. The bill, prepared by the Labour Department on the request of the Department of Electronics and IT/BT to amend the Shops and Establishments Act, 1961, to extend the daily working hours from 9 hours to 12 hours and in exceptional circumstances to 14 hours, with a notification to the government in any such case, has created a storm in the tech workers’ circles.

The Labour Department, which was preparing to introduce the bill in the ongoing legislative session, elaborated on the proposed move. “We have received a request from IT companies.” Labour Minister Santosh Lad said he had tried to gather stakeholders’ views but there were divergent views. The government will take a decision.

Read also: IT/ITeS workers urge Karnataka govt to reconsider long working hours

The Congress regime found itself in a tight spot for the second time in a week after the Labour Department’s failed attempt to introduce a law mandating private companies to provide jobs to local Kannadigas, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announcing that he was shelving the bill until the Cabinet discussed the matter in detail.

The current bill, Karnataka Shops & Commercial Establishments (Amendments) Bill, came about after the IT/BT Department sought changes in the law to extend working hours of employees from 9 to 12 hours a day, with overtime not exceeding 125 hours in a three-month period. The bill also sought to authorise the government to extend working hours to 14 hours a day, including rest breaks, in case of emergency.

According to official sources, these changes were introduced at the request of companies from the IT/ITeS and biotechnology sectors.

Karnataka IT/ITeS Employees Union general secretary Suhas Adiga warned the government that any attempt to introduce changes would incur the wrath of around two million employees working in the IT/ITeS sector.

Electronics production

The latest demand from the technology services sector, sources said, was triggered by an amendment that the previous BJP regime had brought in to help companies like Foxconn and Wistron in the high-end electronics manufacturing sector. In a bid to boost investment in the electronics and semiconductor sector, the assembly amended the Factories Act, 1948, to extend the working hours of employees to 12 hours a day, subject to a weekly limit of 48 hours. This was aimed at helping manufacturing companies raise the permissible overtime hours per quarter to 145 hours from the earlier required limit of 75 hours. Women workers have also been allowed to work in night shifts. The government notified the changes in August last year after the bill received the presidential assent in July last year. Karnataka is trying to adopt modern work practices, like those in some Western countries and China, to emerge as a winner in the cutting-edge electronics and semiconductor sectors.

Workers in high-end electronics manufacturing typically work longer hours during the day, and two 12-hour shifts in cycles would help with high-end electronics production. The change would make life easier for investors in these emerging sectors, according to an official briefed on discussions during the drafting of the bill.

In Karnataka, leaders of the electronics and semiconductor industries have conveyed to the government that the production process for making high-tech devices is smooth and continuous and three-shift work cycles bring its own challenges, the official said.

Last March, the government approved Foxconn’s proposal to invest $1 billion in building an iPhone factory. The world’s largest electronics maker later increased the proposed investment by $1.7 billion.

Karnataka is positioning itself as a key investment destination for electronic systems design and manufacturing (ESDM).

Authorities believe that Foxconn’s investment would help Karnataka attract many other global electronics companies to the state.

Foxconn’s increased expansion into the Indian market is being driven by strong domestic demand for iPhones, as well as growth in exports from India as global supply chains diversify away from China.