Some of the labour laws in the country are really obsolete, dating back to the pre-Independence era, and they need to be changed forthwith in tune with the times, according to G B S Prasad, Director (Personnel), Visakhapatnam Steel Plant.

He was speaking at the inaugural session of a one-day seminar on labour laws and best HR practices organised here on Saturday by the Vizag HR Managers' Association.

HR practices

He said many of the laws needed a relook and benchmarking was of utmost importance in introduction of best HR practices. He laid stress on the importance of HR function in many organisations. He spoke about the HR practices in the steel plant.

Visakha Dairy Chairman A Tulasi Rao, who was the chief guest, said that HR meant "keeping in mind the welfare of my workers and my farmers all the time before taking any decision relating to the dairy" and he followed the principle in right earnest.

He attributed "the remarkable growth of Visakha Dairy as one of the best co-operatives in the State and country" due to his HR practices. He narrated the steps taken by the dairy such as building of a modern hospital for the dairy workers and farmers and construction of bridges and reservoirs.

He said local solutions should be found to local problems and there was no need to get bogged down in high-sounding theory and rhetoric. "Nowadays there is a lot of talk of converting Andhra Pradesh into another Singapore. I find it impractical," he said.

M V S Murthy, HR specialist from the Future Group, said the archaic labour laws of the country should be changed and the HR specialists should embrace IT in a big way. "IT is not a fancy tool. It has great relevance to the field," he added.

sarma.rs@thehindu.co.in

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