The Factories Act 1948, The Motor Transport Workers Act 1961, The Beedi and Cigar Workers Conditions of Employment Act 1966, The Plantation Labour Act 1961, provides the annual leave with wages to workers. Under these Acts, every worker who has worked for a period of 240 days or more in a factory during a year shall be eligible for one day as annual leave with wages for every twenty days of work performed by him during the previous calendar year. Incase of a child, one day for every fifteen days of work performed by him. The Mines Act provides one day annual leave with wages for every 16 days of work performed by him below the ground.
The Plantation Labour Act and The TN Shops and Establishment Act alone provide 14 days and 12 days as a sick leave respectively. The TN Shops and Establishment Act also provide 12 days as casual leave.
The News Paper Working Journalists ( Condition of Service ) Act 1955 provides one month as annual leave with ( full wages ) wages for every 11 month spent on duty and they can carry forward upto 90 days . They are also eligible for one month medical leave (half wages) for every 18 month of his service and 15 days as casual leave once in a year, 21-30 days as quarantine leave is also available to employees covered under this Act . Extraordinary leave can also be granted without wages to employees covered under this Act. Study leave can also be granted with or without wages.
Under the Sales Promotion employees (Conditions of Service) Act 1976, every sales employee shall avail :
(a) earned leave on full wages for not less than one-eleventh of the period spent on duty;
(b) leave on medical certificate on one-half of the wages for not less than one-eighteenth of the period service. A sales promotion employee may be granted extraordinary leave in special circumstances without wages at the discretion of the employer.
A sales promotion employee who has no leave to his credit, may be granted leave not due, at the discretion of the employer and also employee may be granted study leave with or without wages . Where in the presence of an infectious disease, is considered hazardous to the health of other people, the employee concerned may be granted quarantine leave for a period up to 30 days.
An Apprentice shall be entitled to 12 days causal leave, 15 days as medical leave and extraordinary leave of 10 days and to such holidays as are observed in the establishments in which he is undergoing training.
An adult employee can carry forward unavailed leave up to 30 days under the Factories Act, 40 days for adults and 50 days for child under the TN Catering establishment Act, 30 days under the Motor Transport Workers Act.
The annual leave is otherwise called as Privilege leave in certain companies. The casual leave and sick leave are fixed by the company and it depends on policy of the company. If the establishments are not covered under the ESI Act, then the management provides sick leave as per policy (or standing orders) framed by the company.
The companies can also provide one day as annual leave with wages for every less than 20 days of work performed by him based on their leave polices. The eligible annual leave with wages shall be credited into the account of worker at the beginning of the succeeding year.
National and Festival Holiday
The employees are also eligible for 4 days as paid national holidays and 5 days as paid festival holidays under the National and Festival Holidays Act .The festival holiday shall be decided based on the local festival of that locality. The list of such holidays shall be displayed on the notice board and will be circulated to all staff members.
Any change in the notified National and Festival holidays will be at the discretion of the management & the same will be intimated to employees accordingly. If National and Festival holidays fall on Sundays will also be counted in the list of National and festival holidays.
Holidays are off-days granted by the employer to their workmen either voluntarily or compulsorily under the force of law. On a holiday the entire business is closed and no one works while in case of leave the entire business is running.
The holidays declared under the Negotiable Instruments Act are usually applicable to Government departments more particularly to banks and they are not generally adopted by factories and other establishments in the private and public sector. The factory legislations also do not provide for the grant of festival holidays to industrial workers.
But the National and Festival Holidays Act provide such holidays Generally, the occupiers of factories shall fix the number of such holidays in their standing orders or service rules.
Maternity Leave
Every woman shall avail maternity leave for a period of 12 weeks of which not more than 6 weeks shall precede the date of her expected delivery. Under the ESI Act 1948, to avail benefit the woman has to contribute not less than 70 days in two consecutive contribution periods. As in the case of Maternity Benefit Act, the woman has to work not less than 80 days in a year.
The women can avail maternity leave for miscarriage, medical termination of pregnancy, tubectomy operation, and illness arising out of pregnancy. In case of miscarriage, a woman shall be entitled to leave with wages for a period of 6 weeks immediately following the day of her miscarriage. In case of medical termination of pregnancy, a workman shall be entitled to leave with wages for a period 6 weeks. In case of Tubectomy operation, a woman shall be entitled to leave with wages for a period of 2 weeks immediately following the day of her tubectomy operation.
A woman who is suffering from illness arising out of pregnancy, delivery, premature birth of child or miscarriage shall be entitled to leave with wages for a period of one month ( with half pay ).
Child Adoption Leave
Maternity leave is generally not available to adoptive mothers in India, even though an adoptive mother needs it just as much as a biological mother. The central government recently in March 2006, passed an order by extending to adoptive mothers the maternity leave available to biological mothers. So, now, "adoptive mothers with fewer than two surviving children" are entitled to a 'Child Adoption Leave' (CAL) on adoption of a child "up to one year of age". As per the order, Child adoption leave shall not be debited against the leave account. During the period of Child Adoption leave, she shall be paid leave salary equal to the pay drawn immediately before proceeding on leave.
At Railways and Public sector undertaking are providing child adoption leave to woman employees. An adoptive mother with less than two surviving children may be granted Child Adoption Leave' on adoption of a child up to one year of age, on the lines of maternity leave admissible to natural mothers. This facility will not be available to an adoptive mother already having two surviving children at the time of adoption.
The employees shall be eligible for casual leave, sick leave and medical leave as per standing orders or policies of the company. All employees covered under the ESI Act shall eligible for maternity leave, leave for MTP, leave for Tubectomy operation, leave for illness arising out of pregnancy and leave for Sickness. The establishment not covered under the ESI shall be covered under Maternity benefit Act.
Procedure to avail leave
A worker desirous of availing of the leave earned by him during the preceding year has to make an application for such leave at least fifteen days before the date on which he wishes to proceed on leave in writing to the manager of the company. Such leave can be availed in minimum three installments during the year. When annual leave is to be availed due to illness then even the formalities for applying for leave in advance are not necessary
Whether leave can be claimed as of right?
The term "leave" means permission obtained by an employee from his employer relieving him from the duty to attend his work. Therefore leave should be taken in advance before an employee intends to proceed on leave. In short, no workman can proceed on leave without first applying for and obtaining it.
Even though an employee is entitled to and eligible for a certain period of leave, he cannot as a matter of right demand that the same should be granted to him at a particular time when he applies for the same or whenever he applies for the same. Various Courts are also endorsed the point of leave canot be claimed as matter of right.
The reason is that at the particular time when he applies for leave the pressure of work or exigencies of service may be such that his services cannot be spared. But at the same time it cannot also be denied that he has got a right to have his leave application considered and disposed of properly, bona fide and in accordance with law.
All permanent employees of the company can encash their leave subject to certain terms and conditions. Basic salary + HRA + special allowance and conveyance allowance shall be taken into account while calculating leave encashment. Statutory deductions will be made before effecting payment.
If an employee is discharges or dismissed from service or superannuated or quits employment during the course of the year, he shall be entitled to leave with wages at the rate of one day for every 20 days of work and also allowed to encash the un-availed leave if any standing to their credit.. In calculating leave, any fraction of leave of half a day or more shall be treated a one full day leave and any fraction of less than half a day shall be omitted. Management reserves its right to adjust the un availed leave against notice period in case an employee resigns at a very short notice.
Leave without pay or leave on loss of pay:
An employee may be granted leave without pay at the sole discretion of the Head of the plant in consultation with the head of the department. For this period his (earned) leave will not accrue.
Leave during Probation period:
If any employee during his probation period exceeds his normal eligible leave due to any reason, his probation period shall be extended accordingly.
Sabbatical Leave
A period of paid leave granted to an employee to do higher studies or on vacation and be guaranteed return to the job. Based on their company policies, Unpaid sabbatical leave also granted to an employee.
Summary of leave at various Acts
Act | Annual leave with wages | Carry forward | Sick leave | Maternity leave | Casual leave | Ext .leave | Quarantine leave |
Factories Act | Adult – One - 20 | 30 | |||||
Child- one -15 | |||||||
Apprentice Act | 15 | 12 | 10 | ||||
Plantation Labour Act | A- 1-20 Y-1-15 | 30 | 14 2/3 wage | 12 weeks | |||
TN Catering Establishment | A-1-20 Y-1-15 | 40 50 | |||||
Motor Transport | A-1-20 Y-1-15 | 30 40 | |||||
Beedi and cigar workers | A-1-20 C-1-15 | 30 40 | |||||
AP Shop & Establishment | 12 | 24 | 12 | 12 | |||
Newspaper & Journalist | 30 | 90 | 30 | 3months | 15 | Yes no | 21-30 |
Sales Promotion employees ( Conditions of Service ) Act 1976 | Yes | 120 | yes | 15 | yes | 30 |