Employee Wellness – Dutch Uncles

India Brings World’s First Clean Air as A Service Plan Through Devic Earth

Vaishali Das — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 10:59:51 +0000

Devic Earth, a Bengaluru-based environment tech startup founded by Dr. Srikanth Sola, was established in 2018. The startup focuses on eradicating health and environmental problems caused by pollution. It aims to use innovative technological solutions to create a pollution-free workspace by offering user-friendly products for problems related to air pollution.

A Cardiologist-Turned-Entrepreneur: Dr. Srikanth Sola

Dr. Srikanth Sola, during his working days as a cardiologist, came across the reality of air pollution and how dangerous it is in today’s world. He witnessed that among his patients, a relatively young generation were suffering from heart issues. After getting deeper into the problem, he figured out that it is mostly because of the high air pollution that is causing high infection rate.

The realisation made Dr. Sola come up with a device that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven pulsed radio wave technology to lower air pollution at the workplace. The biomedical engineering background helped Dr. Sola along with his researchers to develop Devic Earth’s product ‘pure skies’. By using the same principle of a working ultrasound machine, he applied the same formula to detect the pollutant materials.

Devic Earth’s Product and New Plan

Devic Earth recently launched the world’s first ever “Clean Air As a Service” that helps in improving the ambient air quality in India. This service offers the customers the benefit of improving their ambient air quality, without using any complicated equipment.

The growing health and pharmaceutical industry is slowly taking over the B2B air filter system market. Devic earth’s product, ‘Pure Skies’ serves as an air purifier which uses wi-fi enabled technology to eliminate the pollutant particles and harmful gaseous particle matter in workspaces, homes and cities.

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Devic Earth, aims to use innovative technological solutions to create a pollution-free workspace by offering user-friendly products for problems related to air pollution.

How Clean Air As a Service is a Technological Revolution?

With Devic Earth’s product being installed in companies operating in steel, cement, hotels, mining and manufacturing, it has led to higher productivity at workplaces. Providing a toxin free environment has increased the health factor of the employees.

The startup has pioneered air purifying revolution by inducing green technology. With three different versions of the product for homes, hotels and offices, and large spaces such as industrial spaces, it holds the power of clearing air within a 10 km radius.

Clean Air As a Service is a technological revolution in a way as it improves air quality by 33%. Reducing pollutants that damage human health, the startup has created a wi-fi based network covering large areas with enhanced efficiency.

Growth Record Of Devic Earth

With a positive growth rate since its inception, Devic Earth has been installed in over 40 locations across India. In 2021, the startup raised a pre-series A round of funding of Rs 100 million from Blue Ashva Capital.

The startup is planning to expand its base into the international market of the Middle East, Southeast Asia and the US. It is also looking forward to treating water pollution issues using the same technology.

Impact

Bridging the gap between the human world and the environment, Devic Earth is offering its customers the world’s most advanced technology at a very affordable price. It is impacting the B2B market and is creating a healthy, pollution free workspace.

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Bumble Inc. Offers A Much-Needed Break!

Aakash Sharma — Sat, 26 Jun 2021 05:35:04 +0000

The American social media company Bumble Inc. has given its employees a week off from work to relieve and relax from the stress of the pandemic. The decision, unique and positive as it is, has been praised universally across social media by industry leaders and entrepreneurs.

Bumble founder-CEO and recently turned billionaire businesswoman Whitney Wolfe Herd has taken the action “having correctly intuited the company’s collective burnout”. The company announced in April that all Bumble employees would have a week’s paid leave and be completely offline as part of the vacation in June 2021.

Company’s Collective Burnout and Pandemic Stress are Reasons behind the Break

As the pandemic forced people to refrain from going to their offices, schools and other public spaces, the line between work and ‘the personal’ got blurred amidst innumerable online meetings. This has raised concerns about fatigue and exhaustion globally. While many businesses have thrived in the pandemic year, their workers have never been more exhausted and dismayed.

A Microsoft Corp study has recently found that 41% of workers may quit their tech-savvy, high demanding jobs in the United States this year. Workers are demanding changes as employers risk losing workers if they don’t bend for the right causes.

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Like everyone else, our global team went through a very difficult time during the pandemic," said Rosanna Sachs, a spokeswoman for Bumble.

As vaccination rates rise and restrictions ease, Bumble is focusing on calming the nerves of its teams around the world by letting them focus on themselves for a week.

Bumble’s Business Growth has been Massive

Bumble has grown rapidly than many other companies over the last year. Its rapidly growing users and stock market debut are proof enough of its busy success. During the first quarter of 2021, the number of paid Bumble and Badoo, another Bumble Inc. owned platform, users increased by 30% as compared to the same period last year.

Can businesses in India follow the same road as Bumble’s?

With restrictions largely lifted in the United States due to reduced cases of and mass vaccination against the coronavirus, companies are taking a variety of approaches to retaining employees and increasing productivity. Some want a full return to the office, while others are offering a more flexible approach.

Paid vacation for Bumble employees coincides with a trend in which executives are convincing employees that their well-being is important to them. Apple Inc. is adopting a work-from-home hybrid strategy this year, and Twitter has announced that many of its employees will be able to work from home indefinitely.

While the above-mentioned companies are leaps and bounds ahead of a majority of Indian businesses, the messaging from their actions is worth following suit. Even though the pandemic is far from over in India, a large number of companies call employees to offices as soon as the restrictions are lifted by the government. Such practices of calling employees to offices amidst the pandemic make them extra vulnerable. Their stress levels increase due to the risk of contracting the virus.

Businesses must chart out a pragmatic way for keeping themselves up and running, while simultaneously leaving some space for their employees who have been facing the double brunt of work and pandemic for over one and a half years. That indeed is the most sustainable way to go forward.

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EPFO Updates to Ease the Impact of Second COVID-19 Wave

Aakash Sharma — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 08:35:04 +0000

In a repeated relief measure announced by the government, further withdrawals from EPFO are being allowed to counter the ongoing second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The government first decided to enable lump-sum withdrawal during the pandemic to counter the financial difficulties in March 2020 as part of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY), a COVID-19 relief program.

Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has allowed contributors to withdraw a non-refundable deposit from their savings under COVID-19 relief measures. This is the second time the EPFO has approved such an aid measure due to the ongoing crisis.

How much PF can be withdrawn, and from where can the aid be availed?

Whether employed or self-submitters, Provident Fund subscribers can take out non-refundable amounts from dearness allowances and basic wages for three months or up to 75 per cent of the amount payable to employee credit. EPF members may request a lower amount than stated in the plan.

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The Ministry of Labour and Employment informed that EPFO has settled more than 76.31 million COVID-19 advances and paid Rs 18,698.15 crore.

To process and access complaints, EPFO has implemented an automated grievance process controlled by the e-system. EPFO’s eligible Know Your Customer (KYC) members can request instant withdrawal of their funds. EPFO can reduce the claims settlement cycle to just three days with the automatic payment method as against the legal obligation to settle claims within 20 days.

Aadhaar Mandatory for PF under New EPFO COVID 19 Relief Rules

The ministry has mandated that the Aadhaar number be provided by employees and unorganised sector workers who wish to register, receive benefits or wait for payment under various schemes as per section 142 of the Social Security Code 2020.

Aadhaar is also required for non-organised sector labour organisation databases, including migrant workers. However, the agency did not rule out providing services under various social security schemes if Aadhaar was not submitted.

EPFO has notified employers that from 1st June, if PF accounts are not linked to Aadhaar, then the ECR (electronic challan-cum-return) will not be filled. Employees can still contribute to their PF account, but they will not deposit their employer’s share.

Who Will Benefit from the latest EPFO updates?

EPFO services can be used by any person employed by EPF registered organisations or by private and independent PF depositors who pay the amount themselves. This facility is mainly for those people whose monthly salary is less than Rs. 15,000. Official figures show that EPFO has approved over 7.63 million COVID-19 down payment claims and has paid a total of Rs. 18,698.15 crores since the facility became available.

High demand and expected figures suggest that rising costs have also resulted in heavy losses to workers, mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic and inflation. This new move will benefit the people of India who are now financially affected by COVID.

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What are the Benefits of Working from Home?

Preeti Verma — Wed, 21 Apr 2021 09:35:03 +0000

I have been enjoying my work from home stint since the outbreak of the pandemic. Working in pyjamas and t-shirts, and sipping tea give you a sense of easiness and comfort. This is the most comfortable dressing code for work, according to me! By breaking the barrier of 9-to-5 working hours, I feel a lot more accomplished. I have heard about the common benefits of working remotely (and yes, I am now experiencing them!). After working for more than a year now from home, I believe flexible work is the future of work. With companies all over the world asking their employees to work from home, remote work has become the new normal for businesses and employers. Some of the benefits of working from home for employers and employees can include improved wellbeing and lower costs.

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Retaining top talent, staying competitive in their field, and even saving on business costs are some of the few added advantages employers are witnessing with the work from home benefit.

However, working from home doesn’t mean you are on your own. In fact, you tend to contribute more hours, when working from home. Many progressive companies are now letting their employees work from home. They are preferring to hire freelancers, digital experts, and others, who don’t need office and mostly prefer working from home. One of the major advantages of working from home is you can save a lot of time and money on commuting from home to office and vice versa. In metros, this is a real time burner, where you waste your maximum time jammed in the traffic.

Working remotely not only allows increased flexibility but also autonomy for employees. Nine out of 10 workers, who are currently working remotely, plan to do the same for the rest of their careers. With supporting technologies such as videoconferencing software, collaboration platforms, and cloud services, people are now connected 24X7. This is allowing them to have meetings and complete projects from anywhere, anytime. But it is not just employees who benefit, employers are starting to view remote work as an important part of hiring. Retaining top talent, staying competitive in their field, and even saving on business costs are some of the few added advantages employers are witnessing with the work from home benefit.

Globally, working from home was not the new concept. With the ability to work from anywhere, anytime, remote work was a full-on global work movement even before the Covid-19 pandemic. But now this pandemic has forced millions to work from their homes. In the year 2018, over 50 per cent of the US workforce was showcased to be working remotely. Not just the US, Europe’s remote workers have also surged from 7.7 per cent to 9.8 per cent in the past decade. By providing the flexibility to work when and where, companies can give big advantages to their employees. But for India, working from home is surely a new trend after the coronavirus pandemic. Before the lockdown, it was mostly IT companies, which used to allow their employees flexible working. But now everyone is jumping into this to make work from home possible.

Now after witnessing remote working for over a year, there are a host of advantages for employees as well as for employers. Let’s list out the best benefits of remote working or work from home for both.

Better Work-Life Balance:

For many businesses, few years ago, working remotely would have been nearly impossible. With the absence of the right technology, an employee had to go to the office to get its work done. And there was a downside to all these. There was a blurred line between work and home life. Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is top of mind for many employees. The ability to balance these two worlds has become the key to feeling happier and more productive while at work. Saving time that would otherwise be spent on a long commute allows employees to have better work-life balance and adds hours back into their daily lives. There are many things that can be taken carried off with this. Whether it is dropping kids off at school, running some daily errands, attending an online fitness class in the morning, or managing kids and old ones, these tasks and more are all easier to balance when you work from home.

No Commuting Stress:

The average daily commuting time in India to office is 180 minutes, this includes the daily traffic. Imagine spending 3 hours commuting daily to your workplace, and it really adds up. Cutting out a commute can be both a huge morale booster and a huge time saver. Employees will also waste less money on petrol, gas, diesel or public transportation. This fatigue adds to various diseases and increases level of stress and anxiety. Commuting 10 miles to work every day is associated with health issues like higher cholesterol, elevated blood sugar, and increased risk of depression. Avoiding the commute to office helps you support your mental and physical health. The time saved will allow you to focus on other priorities outside the office work. This can include extra sleep in the morning, spending more time with the family, getting in a workout, or eating a healthy breakfast.

Location Independence:

Working from home also gives you an access to a broader range of job opportunities. These opportunities are not limited by geographic location and gives you a chance to work from anywhere, and any time. Also, this can be a boon to people who are staying in small towns and cities and are deprived of such opportunities. Work from home will give them a good prospect and better salary. Having no set job location means that fully remote workers could also travel and live as digital nomads, while having a meaningful career. People, who are bound to move frequently, such as military or government spouses, can also benefit from having a remote job that can be done from anywhere. This way, they will not have to start over from the scratch with each move.

Promotes Wellbeing:

With no commuting, and no long hours in the office away from family or friends, working remotely can improve the health and wellness of employees by reducing stress. Working in isolation limits exposure to potentially sick co-workers. However, employers shouldn’t skip a wellness plan in the remote workplace. Time to time, they should promote wellness programs such as access to the gym or zumba classes. Wellness program is important for both the work from home and work from office employees. On the same time, you can also pursue other activities or hobbies and improve personal relationships, among other things.

As per a survey, 72 per cent of employers say remote work has a high impact on employee retention. This means employees stay longer with their employers when they have remote work options. Not only this, working from home can also help you to lead better healthy life in various ways. You get ample time for physical activities. You automatically switch to healthier food. You are now less prone to illnesses. Working remotely can give employees the time and environment needed to make healthy choices.

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With supporting technologies such as videoconferencing software, collaboration platforms, and cloud services, people are now connected 24X7.

Money Savings:

Of course, you will see an immediate difference in your bank account when you don’t need to bear the costs of commuting. You will also find savings in other areas such as gas, car maintenance, transportation, parking fees, a professional wardrobe, lunches or snacks, and more. These money now you can save and put back in your account. You won’t have to force yourself into a suit and polished shoes anymore if that’s not your style. You don’t have to maintain a separate wardrobe for work. Similarly, it is a win-win situation for both employers and employees. With work from home being the option, employers don’t have to rent out an office. No overhead cost, and transit subsidies. As per analytics, a normal company can save over $11,000 per annum for each employee, who works from home at least for some time. Companies should consider this as a long-term solution.

Better Initiative for Environment:

Imagine if more and more people start working from home at least half time a year than the greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced automatically. There was a news last year that people in Punjab can clearly see the Himalayan mountain range. This was visible from more than 100 miles away due to the reduction in air pollution caused by the country’s coronavirus lockdown. With consumption of less paper, air condition, microwave, and lighting, remote working has potential to improve air quality.

Increased Productivity and Performance:

The ability for employers to trust their teams, even when they work out of the office, could be the key to driving more productivity than ever before. Data shows that when employees are able to skip the extra coffee breaks, a long commute, and any other distractions to focus on their work, productivity reigns supreme. A two-year remote work productivity study showed, the researchers followed 500 employees after dividing them into ‘remote’ and ‘traditional’ working groups. The remote working group results not only showed a work productivity boost equal to a full day’s work, but also fewer sick days and a 50 per cent decrease in employee attrition. Working from home leads to fewer interruptions, less office politics, a quieter noise level, and less (or more efficient) meetings. Due to lack of commuting, remote workers typically have more time and fewer distractions. This is resulted to increased productivity due to a huge benefit of working from home for both employees and employers alike.

Improved Inclusivity:

Remote work enables companies to embrace diversity and inclusion by hiring people from different socioeconomic, geographic, and cultural backgrounds and with different perspectives. This can be challenging to accomplish when recruiting is restricted to a specific locale that not everyone wants, or can afford, to live near. With allowing work from home, companies choose to support diversity, community, and family. Remote work gives people steady employment at an onsite job, like those with disabilities or caregivers who need a flexible schedule. This is by providing the opportunity to follow their career goals without worrying about commuting back and forth to an office. It also gives employees the flexibility to get to doctor’s and other healthcare appointments when needed.

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New Wage Code 2021- How are businesses going to be affected?

Aakash Sharma — Sat, 27 Mar 2021 12:35:04 +0000

The new definition of wages in India under the New Wage Code 2021 could impact the cash payments that employees take home. The new labour regulations, including the revised wage definition, are expected to come into force on April 1, 2021.

New Wage Code 2021: What is the new definition of wages? Why was it necessary?

The central issue is the new definition of wages issued by the Indian government. It includes all bonuses, be it salaries, allowances, HRA contributions, pension fund (PF), etc., but these may not exceed 50% of the employee’s basic salary. This means that even if companies don’t redefine the compensation framework, they have no choice but to revisit their company remuneration policies again. A large part of the salary is technically defined as the base salary, and the rest is excluded.

According to the new wage law, the allowances that are privy to an employee should not exceed 50% of the cost to the company (CTC). This means that the base salary of each employee must be at least 50% of the CTC. After the new rules come into force, employers who do not pay employees 50% of their CTC as a base salary will have to change their policies.

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The central government will soon announce new rules under the new labour law that will directly affect workers' wage structure in the country.

How will the New Wage Code 2021 affect businesses?

Indian companies hope the government can postpone implementing new labour laws or at least clarify them before April 1st. Otherwise, employees’ salaries that have to be transferred at the start of the new fiscal year will be significantly reduced.

Corporations are still facing the adverse effects of COVID-19, and the pandemic is not over yet. NASSCOM expects the rule to go into effect in May or June, depending on government-industry interaction. In general, labour laws are very much needed. But, as is the case with any new law, these are the initial stages and involve a lot of uncertainty.

Under the cost to company (CTC) model, companies are likely to increase the share of the salary that goes towards employees’ PF. And, it will be at the expense of other allowances leading to lower take-home salary.

Long-term benefits are uncertain

In a slightly positive outlook for the new definition of wages, long-term benefits like post-retirement payments and leave encashment can increase, mainly when applied retrospectively. This means good news for employees but more responsibility for companies. Companies will have to take on more responsibility in collecting the payments and contributing towards the extra funds for employee benefits.

However, the government has not clarified how the change in definition applies to these long-term benefits. The central government will soon announce new rules under the new labour law that will directly affect workers’ wage structure in the country. It will affect the employees’ cost-to-company (CTC) and the employers’ wage bills.

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How Indian Companies are Retaining Employees in a Post Covid world

Shalmoli Sarkar — Sat, 20 Feb 2021 08:35:04 +0000

To keep social interactions to a minimum, workplaces and offices have shifted to a work-from-home model that seems to have blurred the boundaries of personal life and professional life. The deadly contagion has caused havoc in people’s health and lives, leaving the employee morale to reach an all-time low. Now, that it is the virtual workspace, companies should empathize with employees and develop newer employee retention strategies to help them perfectly balance their personal and professional lives. Facing employee attrition, at this point will be challenging for a business because if a company loses an experienced employee it also loses his/her knowledge or skillset permanently if the knowledge is not transferred thoroughly to others. For new hiring, a significant amount of time goes into recruitment, induction, money, resources, and whatnot. The new joiner will also take time to acclimatize with the new company culture, which affects productivity.

We will here talk about few organizations that have taken employee retention to the next level.

Hello, employees, we love you and care for you

Myntra, the e-commerce platform for fashion and apparel has introduced new leave policies for the employees in the pandemic. We work for our families in the end, it is their happiness and well-being that matters the most, keeping this in mind Myntra has offered 14 days of care leaves where employees can take care of the younger children and older parents. It is offering five days of wedding leaves even for same-gender couples and those who are getting married outside the country. It is also giving 24 days of vacation and unlimited wellness or sick leaves.

Sale or discount days in Myntra are hectic, thus leaving the staff working at the fulfillment centers fully exhausted. For them, Myntra has created ‘recharge leaves’ where the staffers get two days off after wrapping the sales to refresh and rejuvenate themselves.

Mental wellness is highly neglected in India and there are only a few companies that recognize mental wellness as essential for the overall well-being of an individual. Urban Company, previously known as Urban Clap has introduced no meeting Fridays and has announced an unlimited mental health leave policy. To provide mental health consultation from leading Indian psychologists to its employees, Urban Company has partnered with iWill -a mental wellness platform. For those living away from their families and alone in the city, the company has introduced a ‘buddy system’ where the company follows silent hours and encourages employees to take personal time off from work.

‘I am having my periods.’ An awkward silence follows when a conversation makes way to this point. Speaking about menstrual cycles has been a stigma yet prevalent in our country. However, in the pandemic, Zomato decided to remove the taboo surrounding the menstrual cycle. The company is now permitting its female employees to take upto ten days of period leave in a year. Zomato has also encouraged them to use the term ‘period leave’ in official emails and WhatsApp chat conversations while requesting for the leaves.

Constantly churning out creative ideas for a brand requires a lot of mind work. With recreation activities on halt and employees working remotely the brain needs relaxation to deliver creativity.

For the well-being of employees Schbang, a creative marketing agency has collaborated with MindHouse, an online gym app for mind to give employees unlimited access to Yoga and meditation. It allows the employees to relax, rejuvenate and stay mentally fit. The agency considers mental health as the need of the hour.

Publicis Groupe India has launched a 24×7 employee assistance programme that will provide counselling and wellness solutions to its employees dealing with various work-life challenges. They have also taken up several initiatives for remote learning and engagement programmes to keep employees connected and not feel alone and isolated. The engagement programmes include fun and play, meditation, fitness, music sessions, knowledge sharing, and interactive webinars.

Employees feel workplaces to be like home when the mind is calm and that helps them to excel professionally. The companies must ensure that employees do not feel stressed at work. Instead, they should give freedom to employees as it will help them to look for innovative and creative ways to solve problems, thus increasing productivity and employee retention.

The post How Indian Companies are Retaining Employees in a Post Covid world appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

Employee Safety from Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

Chayanika Sen — Mon, 25 Jan 2021 03:46:56 +0000

Anita works in a well-known firm in India. One day, her boss, Rohit, sends her inappropriate messages in the middle of the night. Anita was shocked but decided to keep quiet. The next day, he calls her to his cabin and keeps touching her inappropriately while explaining the marketing brief. Anita feels uncomfortable but still stays quiet. Gradually Rohit starts pressuring her for sexual favours in return for promoting her to a new role. Rita works in an IT firm. Her male colleagues always talk about inappropriate topics about girls on the lunch table and tea breaks. They often exchange obscene videos on their common WhatsApp group. Rita feels uncomfortable but being the only girl on the team, she decides to stay quiet and never complains. Do these incidents fall under sexual harassment? How should we ensure employee safety in such working atmospheres?

Women Employee Safety from Sexual Harassment at workplace and POSH

The Indian legislature formed the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, commonly known as the POSH act, in 2013. The act was drafted to ensure female employee safety in workplaces safe from sexual harassment. The act also made employers responsible for preventing, prohibiting, and offering redressal towards any act of sexual harassment.

The POSH Act defines sexual harassment as “unwelcome sexually tinted behaviour, whether directly or by implication, such as:

(i) Physical contact and advances,

(ii) Demand or request for sexual favours,

(iii) Making sexually coloured remarks,

(iv)Showing pornography, or

(v) Any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of a sexual nature.”

The act further defines the quid pro quo type of sexual harassment. The above-stated example of Rohit and Anita is a classic example of a quid pro quo type of sexual harassment where a person of power pressurizes a woman employee for a sexual favour in return for favours/advancement at the workplace. Know that the POSH Act applies to organized and unorganized sectors in India, including public, private, and government sectors.

Women Employee Safety from Sexual Harassment at workplace and POSH

The POSH Act defines sexual harassment as “unwelcome sexually tinted behaviour, whether directly or by implication, such as:

(i) Physical contact and advances,

(ii) Demand or request for sexual favours,

(iii) Making sexually coloured remarks,

(iv)Showing pornography, or

(v) Any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of a sexual nature.”

What is the workplace?

The POSH acts safeguard sexual harassment at the workplace. But what is a workplace in its real sense? The POSH Act defines the workplace clearly. As defined by Section 2(o) workplace is defined as:

Any department, organisation, undertaking, establishment, enterprise, institution, office, branch or unit which is established, owned, controlled, or funded by either the Government, a local authority (such as a Municipal Corporation), a Government Corporation, or a Government-run co-operative society.
Any private-sector organisation, private venture, undertaking, enterprise, institution, establishment, society, trust, NGO, or a service provider that carries out commercial, professional, vocational, educational, entertainment, industrial, financial or health-related activities.

3. Hospitals and nursing homes.

4. Sports institutes, stadiums, sports complexes, and competition venues that may be used for training, sports, or any other related activities.

5. Any place visited by an employee arising out of during the course of their employment. This includes any transportation service provided by the employer for visiting any such place.

6. A house or any domestic dwelling.

7. Any enterprise, commonly said to belong to the unorganized sector, which is owned by individuals or self-employed workers and engaged in the production of sale of goods or services

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If she feels sexually harassed ,your intention is irrelevant.

What does POSH include?

The act includes situations like:

Physical contact and advances
Demand or request for sexual favours
Showing pornography
Any other unwelcome physical, verbal, or non-verbal conduct of a sexual

The POSH Act ensures all women employee safety from sexual harassments regardless of whether:

i.They are employed regularly, temporary, ad hoc, or daily wage basis.

ii.They are employed directly or through an agent or a contractor.

iii. They are employed with or without the knowledge of the principal employer.

iv.They are employed for remuneration or on a voluntary basis.

v.The terms of employment are expressed or implied.

The Act also applies to women contract workers, probationers, trainees, apprentices, and interns.

A brief background to POSH

On 22 September 1992, Bhanwari Devi, a woman working under the Women’s Development Project run by the Government of Rajasthan, was gang-raped by a group of men as an act of vengeance because she protested an illegal act of child marriage. Following the event, there was a delay in doing a medical examination or making a police complaint. In short, justice was delayed. In the pursuit of seeking justice, many women activists’ groups supported Bhanwari Devi. A Public Interest Litigation was filed by a women’s organization known as Vishaka that focused on the enforcement of the fundamental rights of the women at the workplace and employee safety under the provision of Article 14, 15, 19, and 21 of the Constitution of India. The Supreme Court of India acknowledged it, and the Vishaka guidelines were formed that were treated as law declared under Article 141 on the Indian Constitution. These guidelines served as the foundation of The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013.

Why is it mandatory to have woman employee safety in the workplace?

POSH is mandatory to have in the workplace for employee safety from sexual harassment. Whether you’re an individual, partnership, or company, you cannot miss having POSH at the workplace. Therefore, irrespective of the nature and number of employees, it is mandatory to have at the workplace.

Non-compliance with the POSH Act can cost a monetary penalty for an employer. Repeated non-compliance can lead you to twice the punishment, cancelation of license, withdrawal, or nonrenewal of business license by the local government. Additionally, it may cost the reputation of your business.

The Companies (Accounts) Rules, 2014 have been amended to mandate the disclosure regarding the implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act (POSH laws) in the Director’s report of every company.

Companies commemorated for best POSH practices and employee safety

Ever since the POSH act was formed, organisations have been becoming aware of the POSH act and its necessity at the workplace. With the growing number of women in the workforce and the increasing frequency of sexual harassment at the organization, employers are adapting some of the best practices to ensure women employee safety. Some organizations have gone beyond the POSH act requirements to give a safe place to work for which they have been commemorated.

Some of the organisations that have taken exemplary measures in implementing POSH at the workplace and got commemorated for their efforts are: Robert Bosch Engineering, AstraZeneca, 63 Moons Technologies, Tata power company, Siemens, Healthineers, RapidValue solutions and so on.

POSH training and best practices

Having a POSH policy at the workplace is not just enough. You need to train your employees and managers to be aware of the POSH policy, the implication, and how to raise a complaint should there be any incidence of sexual harassment. Apart from regular training, here are some of the best practices that you can implement at your workplace to prevent sexual harassment:

Offer sexual awareness training in the regional language if you have a lesser educated employee base like contract employees to ensure they understand the importance and implications of it.

Popular and well-accepted movies like the Bollywood movie “PINK” can be shown to the employees during training. You can also enact or do scripted roleplays during training to help the audience identify dos and don’ts at the workplace regarding sexual harassment.

Roadshows are equally popular for conducting POSH training. These can include games, quizzes, panel discussions, and more. A top-IT firm created a video entry competition among its employees on sexual harassment theme. It is a great way to let people learn the POSH policies while positively engaging the employees.

Books help too, especially for managers who have subordinates working under them. So, consider giving books like BCC: Behind Closed Cubicles to your managers.

Exclusive training to managers also helps in the long run to understand and implement the POSH policies.

Only training is not adequate. You also need to understand how safe your women employees feel at work. Conducting anonymous surveys help to understand the pulse of the employees. Having an online or on phone helpline by a third-party vendor encourages employees to report a violation. “Women only interventions” help women employees open up and speak about the harassment at the workplace.

Decoding the POSH act for employee safety- What companies need to know

Now that you understand that you need to be POSH compliant for your business, let’s see how you can be POSH compliant and what actions you need to take.

Having a committee for redressal of complaints

Every organisation with more than ten employees needs to have a mandatory Internal Complaints Committee to address and redress any complaint related to sexual harassment. Even if the organisation does not have women employees, having an ICC is compulsory. For organisations that have less than ten employees, all sexual harassment complaints are to be made with the local complaints committee set by the district magistrate.

Draft a POSH policy

Draft a POSH policy for your organisation with the help of your corporate lawyer. Have a clause included that specifies the repercussion on the employee should they indulge in any such Act. The repercussion could be the termination of a job or wage loss.

Include the POSH policy in your Annual Report

If you need to do the Annual report for your company, ensure you have the POSH policy and reports included in your report. It should consist of your company POSH policy, how many cases were registered in the year, and the investigation reports.

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First rule of self-defense is: Don't ask your attacker for validation.

- Barbara Dee, Author of May Be He Just Likes You

#METOO Movement and POSH

In India, the #METOO movement started in 2018. Women took on to social media to voice their experience with sexual harassment. From celebrity women to ordinary citizens, everyone joined the raging roar on social media during the movement. The most significant outcome of the movement was that women who felt sceptical or afraid to raise their voices against their predators, joined the movement too. Many well-known and celebrity women joined the movement as well that gave more strength and courage to the women across the country. As a result, organisations now have no choice but to wake up and listen to their employees and redress should there be an event of sexual harassment because now they know that women can voice their complains on social media which will only tarnish the reputation of the organisation.

The movement provided courage to hundreds of women who were wary of complaining. The movement saw an increase in complaints by almost 14-15% in 2018-2019. The movement brought in awareness among the mass, while companies stirred to take POSH more seriously. As a result, companies have started doing the due diligence of their senior employees, encouraged self-reporting, giving training to their employees, having internal committees in place, etc. While the #METOO movement has shaken up organisations, we need not wait for another movement to irradicate sexual harassment from the workplace. A great way to combat sexual harassment and ensure employee safety is to have gender equality in the workplace while educating and training every employee.

The post Employee Safety from Sexual Harassment in the Workplace appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

Employees’ Provident Fund: EPF and EPFO

Aakash Sharma — Sat, 19 Dec 2020 04:40:26 +0000

Starting a business or a company involves numerous challenges and processes.

From planning out the basic foundation of the business and amassing enough capital for it, to analysing the business climate and your position in it, it is certainly a long and hectic process. You naturally face a lot of questions about your own self as well as the workings of the professional world.

And among these doubts, one question that puzzles new and budding entrepreneurs, as well as the new workforce entering the professional world, is the question of the ‘provident fund’- EPF. To understand what the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) are, let’s delve into some details of the scheme and the organisation.

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It is a welfare scheme for the benefits of the employees. Both employer and employee contribute their share of the amount and the whole amount is deposited by the employer in employees’ EPF account.

What is EPF?

By definition, EPF is a scheme under the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Act, 1952. It is a social security scheme which is maintained and monitored by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) — a body that promotes employees to save funds for retirement, and more recently for other life events like marriage, child birth or even a medical emergency. EPFO is governed by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India and was launched in 1951. Basically, it is a welfare scheme for the benefits of the employees. Both employer and employee contribute their share of the amount and the whole amount is deposited by the employer in employees’ EPF account.

Applicability of the EPF Scheme

As a new entrepreneur, it is imperative for you to know the details about EPF as it has a significant influence on the working environment of your venture. The most important thing for a new business owner to know about EPF is— is her/his company required to register with the EPFO? Well, EPFO registration is mandatory for any company which is engaged in any industry and has 20 or more persons. Thus, it is compulsory for the company to register with the EPFO and contribute to the employees’ EPF account.

It must be noted that companies that have less than 20 employees can also obtain PF registration as a completely voluntary measure. Such a company can choose to opt for the EPF scheme. The employees will be eligible for a PF from the starting of their employment with the said company. The responsibility of deduction & payment of PF will lie with the employer as directed by the law.

To understand more about the applicability and further rules for employers regarding the EPF, let us understand the EPF system for employers.

EPFO Tasks for Employers

We have established that any company with more than 20 employees has to register with the EPFO and contribute to the employees’ account. Now, you must know that as part of the process involved in EPF, the employer is supposed to do the following tasks while onboarding employees in her/his company:

PF Registration: The employer has to register the new employee into the EPF scheme with the help of Form 11. Form 11 is a self-declaration form that has to be filled and submitted by an employee at the time of joining a new organization. This form can be downloaded from the EPFO website, the link for the same is https://www.epfindia.gov.in/site_docs/PDFs/Downloads_PDFs/Form11Revised.pdf;

Correction of Personal Details: The employer has to verify the details filled by the employee. EPFO’s Universal Account Number (UAN) with the Aadhaar, the errors in the personal details of members like spelling errors have to be fixed by the employer;

Generating Universal Account Number (UAN): Now, the employer has to generate UAN for the new employee who does not have an existing UAN. To make a new UAN, the employer has to login UAN employer portal;

Uploading KYC: KYC is mandatory for the withdrawal of EPF. The EPFO needs the PAN, Bank account number and Aadhaar or other KYC details of each EPF member. Hence, it is the responsibility of the employer to record and upload the KYC details of her/his employees;

PF Payment: The employer has to pay the EPF contribution to the EPFO every month. The employer has to pay EPF contribution within 15 days of the next month. If the deadline is missed the company will be in the defaulter list and they have to pay a penalty for the default period;

PF Returns: An employee has to file a return of monthly payment by logging in to UAN employer portal and filling the Electronic Challan cum Return (ECR). The employer will give details of the employees, their salary as well as contribution. EPFO will then update the passbook of every employee. It is tallied with the aggregate of the EPF amount paid and an annual return is then filed by the employer;

Informing UAN number and EPF ID: The employer has to inform about the UAN and EPF member ID to its employee. It is usually printed in the salary slip. The employer persuades its employees to activate their UAN in order to do EPF related tasks online.

Employee and Employer Contributions to the Employee Provident Fund (EPF)

Employee’s contribution towards EPF – 12% of the employee’s salary is deducted by the employer on a monthly basis for a contribution towards EPF. The entire contribution goes towards the EPF account.

Employer’s contribution towards EPF – The employer also contributes 12% of the employee’s salary towards EPF.

For EPF, both the employee and the employer contribute an equal amount of 12% of the monthly basic salary of the employee. You need to understand here that the basic salary is the total amount (before any deductions) paid to employees including any allowances. Simply said, it is the fixed amount that is paid to employees by their employers in return for the work performed. So, it is from this fixed amount that the 12 per cent deduction is made to contribute to the EPF scheme, and your employer deposits the same 12 per cent sum in your EPF account. The PF contribution of 12 per cent is divided equally between the employer and employee. The employer’s contribution is 12 per cent of the basic salary.

If the establishment has employed less than 20 employees and still voluntarily opts for the scheme, the PF deduction rate will be 10 per cent. Another interesting fact here is that employees can contribute more than 12 per cent of their salary voluntarily; however, the employer is not bound to match the extra contribution of the employee.

The employer’s monthly contribution is restricted to a maximum amount of Rs 1,800. Even if the employee’s salary exceeds Rs 15,000, the employer is liable to contribute only Rs 1,800 (12% of Rs 15,000).

An employer can also create a trust to manage the EPF contribution. For this reason, an employer is not required to remit EPF contribution as it goes to the private trust. Instead, the trust should provide an equal or higher return than the EPFO.

The next logical question that arises is the eligibility of employees for this scheme.

EPF Eligibility for Employees

As far as the eligibility of employees for the EPF is concerned, every salaried individual working in the organized sector (PSUs, Private Companies, Banks, Start-up, etc.) is eligible for the EPF scheme. It must be noted though that the EPF scheme is mandatory for salaried employees with a basic income less than Rs15, 000 per month. You have no choice but to contribute to the scheme.

On the other hand, employees earning a basic salary of more than Rs 15,000 per month have the option to either choose the scheme or to opt out of it. And if the employees want to opt out of the EPF scheme, they will have to do so at the start of their career. Because, once they become a member of the EPFO, the membership cannot be cancelled or opted out from.

But, in a company where, let’s say all the employees are earning more than Rs 15,000 per month. What happens in that case? In such a situation, the employer and a majority of employees come to an agreement that they either choose to be a part of the scheme or opt out of it.

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It helps in saving money at the time of retirement and helps an individual maintain a good lifestyle.

What happens to the EPF in Contractual Employment?

EPF Contribution can be done only for the Permanent employees of the company. Contract staff, Temporary staff and other people who are not on the permanent payroll of the company do not get covered under EPF.

One might argue that they don’t see any positive point in getting a mandatory deduction from their salary which is already as low as Rs 15,000, while those who earn more than Rs 15,000 have an option to choose it or opt out of it. Well the reasoning behind this is simple- a person earning less today might be at a higher financial risk in future. And to ensure their future financial security, this contribution to EPF in the present is certainly important and a very viable plan.

Let’s identify some more benefits of EPF.

EPF Benefits

The EPF scheme benefits employees in many ways, some of which are mentioned below:

There is no requirement to make a single, lump-sum investment. Deductions are made on a monthly basis from the employee’s salary and it helps in saving a huge amount of money over a long period.

It helps in saving money at the time of retirement and helps an individual maintain a good lifestyle.

It can help an employee financially during an emergency. It helps in saving money for the long run.

There’s more. You also get interest in the contributions made to the EPF by you and your employer. This is called the EPF Interest Rate. Currently, the PF interest rate is 8.50%. This amount is added to the employer and employee contributions at the end of the year to find the total balance in the account.

It is possible to easily calculate the interest amount accumulated in the EPF account at the end of a financial year.

Withdrawal of EPF

Withdrawals are made from the EPF account for financing an insurance policy, buying or building a house, and other situations mentioned on the EPFO website. EPFO subscribers can now withdraw 75% of their PF after 1 month of unemployment. Also, the remaining 25% of the amount can be withdrawn after 2 months of unemployment. The claim settlement period for PF withdrawal is now just 10 days

Recent changes to the policy

Following changes have been recently made to the EPF Scheme by the government:

Aadhar Card is compulsory for pensioners and subscribers.

EPF contribution rate for the newly recruited female employees has been reduced from 12% to 8%. This will be available to the new female employees for the first 3 years of employment.

Employers must consider special allowances paid to the employees as a part of the “Basic Wage” for deduction towards provident fund.

Women employees resigning to get married can withdraw their 100% without waiting for two months.

In a nutshell

EPFO is the largest social security scheme in the world. It is aimed at achieving the socio-economic stability of the organised working class. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, the government used the EPF accounts of citizens to give them some form of financial aid as the economy took a hit by the pandemic. The EPF organisation announced measures like the payment of 8.5% of the deposited PF to its subscribers in two instalments. The Indian government also mulled on options to open up EPFO subscriptions for all self-employed people.

The fact that 8 million people withdrew their EPF during April to July amounting to Rs.30,000 crore clearly indicates that this scheme is extremely beneficial for the Indian working class It is safe to say that the EPF is one of the best ways of financial security and even investment.

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