HR Policy Difference Between Labour Working At Plant And Employees Working In Corporate?

Hello,

I have two queries regarding HR policy and Statutory Acts:

1) What are the differences between the HR policy for labor working at the plant and employees working in the corporate office of the same company?

2) What are the differences between the Statutory Acts for labor at the plant and Statutory Acts for employees in the corporate office? Alternatively, could you provide me with a list of Acts applicable to labor at the plant and Statutory Acts for employees in the corporate office?

Could anyone provide me with updates regarding the above queries?

Thanks & Regards,
Parul
HR

Hi Parul,

Yes, there can be a difference in working in different places, but the basic law behind the policy will need to comply with legal acts. Therefore, it is possible that all policies should be accepted by top management in consideration of the workmen (union). In doing so, there should not be any problems in the implementation of policies that vary across different locations.

Regards,
Srihari

Dear Seeker,

Your Query:

1) What is the difference between HR policies for laborers working at a plant and employees working in a corporate office for the same company?

2) Can you outline the variances in Statutory Acts applicable to laborers in a plant versus Statutory Acts for employees in a corporate office? Alternatively, could you provide a list of Acts governing laborers at a plant and Statutory Acts for employees in a corporate office?

Position: An organization's/company's/establishment's Human Resources policy (considered as Energy & Intelligence) is designed for all its members without discrimination based on gender, caste, creed, nationality, or any other such description.

Statutory provisions differ for factories and non-factory commercial establishments. In many cases, both Central and respective State Acts and Rules apply. The application of either the Factory Act or the Shops & Commercial Establishment Act and Rules for corporate office premises depends on their location, whether within or outside the factory premises.

Compiling all Acts and State Rules in a single volume would be extensive. It is recommended to opt for a Compendium instead.

Kritarth Consulting Pvt Ltd

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20.11.13, 9 p.m

Hello,

Thanks for your valuable inputs. I am still confused because my main concern is which policies may differ? For example, the leave policy, internal and external policies, etc., and the same for acts like the Minimum Wages Act, etc. Are they applicable to non-factory offices?

Anyways, thanks.

Regards,
Parul

There is hardly any difference between HR policies of a factory and that of its Corporate Office. If at all there is any difference, it will be in the registration part. For example, the factory will come under the Factories Act and is registered under it. It will follow the provisions relating to health, safety, and welfare of employees as provided under the Factories Act, whereas the Corporate Office will be registered under the State Shops and Commercial Establishments Act. It will follow the provisions relating to health, safety, welfare, etc., as provided in that Act. There is not much difference in these provisions either. There may be differences regarding leaves, working hours, or similar minor things, but both Acts are in place to take care of the health, safety, and welfare of persons employed.

With regard to the payment of minimum wages, both factories and Corporate Offices come under the same Act and should follow the notifications of minimum wages. Both workers in factories and Corporate Offices are eligible for bonuses, maternity benefits, gratuity, PF, ESI, etc. Employees of both are given protection under the Industrial Disputes Act. The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, which was earlier applicable to factory workers only, has been extended to employees in Corporate Offices in many states as well. Both employees in factories and Corporate Offices have an equal right to take membership in a Trade Union. The procedure that the management should follow in order to take disciplinary action should be the same for workers in the factory and Corporate Office.

In practice, what is confusing is that we generally believe that factory workers are unionized, whereas the employees in the Corporate Office cannot form or take membership in the Union. This is not true. The scope of all Labor Laws is the same for all employees. There can be exceptions, like supervisors and managerial personnel not coming under the Industrial Disputes Act. While reading this, we should note that managerial personnel at the Factory are also out of the scope of the ID Act. This means there can be different HR policies for workmen category employees and managerial category employees, but we cannot have separate policies for Corporate Office employees and factory workers. Of course, depending on the nature of work, there can be different conditions of service. For example, plant workers shall work in shifts, and in some departments, the work cannot be stopped throughout the year. Employees of that department, like those in the emergency department, may not be given holidays as per the usual schedule. Corporate Office employees shall work for five days a week with a daily spreadover of nine hours, etc.

In practice, therefore, we will have Standing Orders for workers/employees who do not have supervisory or managerial authority and a Service Manual/HR manual for those who come under the Managerial category. The former is a legal requirement, whereas the latter is not mandatory. Instead of writing everything in the appointment order/contract of employment with a manager, if we have a Service Manual for Managers, we can simply state that the 'other terms and conditions of service will be as per the Service Manual'.

Madhu.T.K

Hi Friends,

What Madhu T.K said is absolutely correct; there is no huge difference between the laws and procedures for factories and headquarters. All the enactments were drafted to safeguard the interests of employees or workers. The main objective of all the statutes is to provide a safe and healthy work environment. Thus, there may not be a difference between headquarters and a factory regarding government statutes like ESI, PF, Gratuity, and Bonus.

With Warm Regards,
Ravichandra

Dear Parul Ji,

All the above members have explained in detail the relationship between the company policies and acts. Company policy is formed based on acts. Company policy is framed based on the nature of the company's work, whether it is a manufacturing unit or an intermediate unit. The nature of the workforce is also taken into consideration when providing the provisions of the act. Unionism also plays a vital role in policy-making.

There is no static hard line between policy and acts; the welfare of the employees is the only thing that matters between the two.

Thank you.

Madhu has explained it well, but I may understand your confusion. It is very simple, just like being in the house and working in the kitchen. Hence, all the members belong to the same family, so the same rules and laws generally apply. However, one who works in the kitchen here implies "working at the plant" where actual production is done. Therefore, more precautions are needed. This is considered for the purposes of safety precautions, work accidents, and work hazards. Hence, the rules differ when it comes to safety. Instead of the word "differ," "applicability" suits well. Therefore, those precautionary measures prescribed by law apply to those who work in certain prescribed conditions. There is no point in its applicability to those who work at the corporate/head office of the company or outside the production premise. The kind of work they do differs, hence the kind of rules or clauses prescribed in the rules differ.

All you need to understand is that the Act or Rules, the Law is the same for all, but it has chapters and sections/clauses. They apply as per their applicability, which will be mentioned in such sections itself, just like out of kitchen groceries, you choose the specific one suitable for your dish. (I believe I did not confuse you!)

If you want to understand it thoroughly, just go through an Act or a Rule once and observe.

The members have more or less provided the correct answer. The first question is whether the employee is a "worker" as defined in The Factories Act, 1948, and working within the "Factory" premises. Such workers are governed by the Standing Order of the Company. Other employees/workers who are not working inside the factory (e.g., Corp Office, H.O., Sales Office, etc.) are governed by other Rules which could be those of the other employees, including Officers of that Organization. The only difference could be the variance in the leave applicable to that class of employee. Hope this helps.

Parul,

Different acts apply to the corporate office and plant. Your question is very general. Location, nature of work, industry, number of employees, formation of the company, registration, etc., are a number of factors that differentiate the applicability of laws and policies. Thanks.