The Hindu Business Line : Cabinet nod for social security for unorganised workers

New Delhi, Aug. 21 Amendments to the Unorganised Sector Workers’ Social Security Bill 2007 were approved by the Cabinet on Thursday to extend social security cover to all workers deprived of the benefits of provident fund and health insurance.

Consequently the earlier Bill, pending in the Rajya Sabha, will now be rechristened the Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Bill 2008.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, the Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Mr P.R. Dasmunsi, said that efforts would be made to ensure the passage of the Bill in the next session of Parliament.

New provisions

Under the new Bill, it has been suggested that the proposed National Advisory Board for Labour Welfare will now be headed by the Union Labour Minister instead of Central Government nominee, as mentioned in the earlier version.

A new section has been added to the earlier Bill, creating provisions for State Governments to set up workers’ facilitation centres to disseminate information on available social security schemes, registration of workers with respective district administration and issuing identity cards.

In the earlier format, there was no provision for parliamentarians to be members of the national advisory board. The new Bill makes it mandatory for the board to have one member each from the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha as permanent members.

The move to cover unorganised workers in the organised sector, such as watch and ward staff, cleaners, sweepers among others, usually sourced through contractors, will involve financial commitments from their respective employers. In order to ensure compliance from such employers groups, the phrase “employers of unorganised sector” has been replaced by “employers of unorganised workers”, official sources said.

The new Bill envisages inclusion of all the existing social security schemes under its ambit. These include Aam Admi Bima Yojna, Janshree Bima Yojna, Rasthriya Swastha Bima Yojana, Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme, and Janani Suraksha Yojana, among others.

All these schemes are currently monitored by public sector insurance companies and the premium is shared by the Central and State Governments. An official spokesman, when contacted, said that details of the administrative mechanisms of the existing insurance schemes, post the passage of the Bill, will be separately dealt with by the Finance Ministry.

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