‘One third of the workforce will be thrown out from their employment,’ ; KITU opposes amendment to Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishment Act

The Karnataka State IT/ITes Employees Union (KITU) has expressed strong opposition to a proposal by the Karnataka State Government to amend the  Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishment Act. KITU has claimed that the amendment would allow companies to extend the work shift of employees up to 14 hours. “The proposal to amend the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishment Act to facilitate 14-hour working days was presented in a meeting called by the labour department with various stakeholders in the industry. Labour Minister Shri Santosh S Lad, officials from Department of Labour and IT-BT ministry attended the meeting. KITU representatives strongly raised our opposition to the proposed amendment,” a press release from KITU mentioned. 

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KITU threw light on the possible repercussions on the health of employees such as death by stroke and ischemic heart disease. KITU urged for 20 lakh IT employees across Bengaluru to unite in order to ward off the supposed negative repercussions that would follow suit if the amended bill gets passed. “The proposed new bill "Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments (Amendment) Bill 2024' attempts to normalise a 14-hour work day. It will facilitate the IT/ITES companies to extend the daily hours of work indefinitely. This amendment will allow the companies to go for a two shift system instead of the currently existing three shift system and one third of the workforce will be thrown out from their employment. During the meeting KITU pointed out the studies on the health impact of extended working hours among the IT employees. As per the report of KCCI, 45% of employees in the IT sector are facing mental health issues such as depression and 55% facing physical health impacts. Increasing working hours will further aggravate this situation,” the press release highlighted.