Now Gujarat Substantially Eases Labour Laws, Allows Industries To Work 24x7; Urges Firms To Shift From China

Gujarat has followed Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in easing labour laws and providing relief to industries and businesses in the light of the Covid-19 pandemic, Financial Express has reported.

As per Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, any new project will be exempted from all labour laws except three provided the company is committed to run the business for at least 1,200 days. The only laws applicable to such businesses would be - minimum wages, safety and compensation in case of accidents.

Chief Minister Rupani also said that his government will welcome companies operating in countries like US, China to shift to Gujarat. He said that the officials are already trying to attract companies to shift base from China.

The state government has also permitted industries to work round the clock provided there is enough supply of labour. Earlier, only a select few industries were permitted to do so.

Workers can now be employed by the firms in 12 hour shifts instead of the currently mandated eight hour. Thus workers can be employed for 72 hours per week instead of 48 hours without having to pay them double the wages.

These measures are designed to help industries cope in the post-lockdown period and continue production with limited workers.