The Factories Act 1948
The Factories Act 1948 is a piece of social law established to ensure the safety, health, and welfare of people at work. The Act’s goal is to regulate working conditions in manufacturing establishments that fall under the definition of “factory” as defined by the Act.
The Act is enforced in India by the Ministry of Labour and Employment’s Directorate General Factory Advice Service and Labour Institutes (DGFASLI) and state governments’ factory inspectorates. DGFASLI provides advice to the federal and state governments on the implementation of the Factories Act and the coordination of factory inspection services throughout the country.
The Act applies to any factory employing 10 or more workers on any day of the preceding twelve months, or if not using power, employing 20 or more workers on any day of the preceding twelve months, and in any part of which a manufacturing process is being carried out with the aid of power, or is ordinarily carried out, or where twenty or more workers are working, or were working on any day of the preceding twelve months, and in any part of which a manufacturing process is being carried out with the aid of
The following chapters go through several provisions:
- CHAPTER I Preliminary
- CHAPTER II The Inspecting Staff
- CHAPTER III Health
- CHAPTER IV Safety
- CHAPTER IVA Provisions relating to Hazardous processes
- CHAPTER V Welfare & Grievance
- CHAPTER VI Working hours of adults
- CHAPTER VII Employment of young persons
- CHAPTER VIII Annual leave with wages
- CHAPTER IX Special provisions
- CHAPTER X Penalties and procedure
- CHAPTER XI Supplemental
The Factories Act 1948
- Worker
According to section 2(l), a “worker” is a person who is employed directly or indirectly by or through any agency (including a contractor) with or without the knowledge of the principal employer in any manufacturing process, or in cleaning any part of the machinery or premises used in a manufacturing process, or in any other kind of work incidental to, or connected with the manufacturing process, or the subject of the manufacturing process, whether for remuneration or not, whether for remuneration or not.
- Manufacturing Methodologies
Section 2(k) defines “manufacturing process” as “any procedure for-
(I) preparing, modifying, mending, ornamenting, finishing, packing, oiling, washing, cleaning, dismantling, demolishing, or otherwise treating or adopting any product or substance for use, sale, transportation, delivery, or disposal; or
(ii) Pumping any material, including oil, water, sewage, or any other substance; or
(iii) Power generation, transformation, or transmission; or
(iv) typesetting, letterpress printing, lithography, photogravure, or other comparable processes, or bookbinding; or
(v) Building, re-building, repairing, refitting, completing, or dismantling ships or boats; or
(vi) Keeping or keeping any item in a cold storage facility;
- Process that is potentially hazardous
According to section 2(cb), a “hazardous process” is any process or activity related to an industry listed in the “First Schedule” that, unless special precautions are taken, could result in raw materials, intermediate or finished products, bye-products, wastes, or effluents being released into the environment.
- Cause significant harm to the health of anyone involved in or linked with it
Result in pollution of the general environment:- Provided, however, that the State Government may change the First Schedule by adding, omitting, or altering any industry named in the said Schedule by publication in the official Gazette;
- The 1948 Factories Act had a specific goal.
The Indian Factories Act, 1948 has three main objectives: to regulate factory working conditions, to regulate health, safety, and annual leave, and to enact special provisions for young people, women, and children who work in factories.
- Hours of Work:
No adult worker must be compelled or permitted to work in a factory for more than 48 hours in a week, according to the provision of working hours for adults. A weekly holiday should be implemented.
- Well-being:
The Act mandates that every factory be maintained clean and that all essential steps be taken in this respect in order to preserve employees’ health. The factories should have suitable drainage, lighting, ventilation, and temperature controls, among other things.
It is necessary to make adequate provisions for drinking water. There should be enough latrines and urinals at handy locations. Workers should have easy access to these, and they must be maintained clean.
- Safety:
To ensure worker safety, the Act stipulates that equipment should be caged, that no young person should operate at any hazardous machine, and that in tight places, enough manholes should be provided so that employees may escape in the event of an emergency.
- Welfare:
The Act stipulates that enough and proper washing facilities be supplied and maintained for the use of employees in every workplace for their wellbeing.
Clothing storage and drying facilities, resting areas, first-aid equipment, shelters, rest rooms and lunch rooms, and crèches should all be available.
- Penalties:
When the terms of The Factories Act, 1948, or any regulations created under the Act, or any written order issued under the Act are broken, it is considered a crime. There are a variety of punishments that may be imposed:
(a) A sentence of imprisonment of up to one year;
(b) A fine of up to one lakh rupees; or (c)
c) Both a fine and imprisonment.
A penalty of Rs. 500/- may be imposed on a worker who misuses an appliance connected to worker welfare, safety, and health, or in connection to the execution of his obligations.
The Factories Act of 1948 Applicability
The Act applies to any factory where ten or more workers are employed, or were employed, on any day in the previous twelve months, and where a manufacturing process is being carried out with the aid of power, or is ordinarily carried out, or where twenty or more workers are employed, or were employed on any day in the previous twelve months, and where a manufacturing process is being carried out without the aid of power, or is ordinarily carried out.
Factories Act of 1948 (Importance of Factories Act)
The Factories Act of 1948 is an important piece of law. The Act’s main goal and purpose is to protect employees’ interests, halt their exploitation, and ensure their safety, cleanliness, and welfare at their workplaces. It imposes a variety of obligations, duties, and responsibilities on a factory’s tenant as well as the factory manager. The nature and breadth of the idea of occupier has been significantly expanded as a result of Act amendments and judicial rulings, particularly in relation to dangerous activities in factories.
Definitions
Occupier
According to section 2(n), a factory’s “occupier” is the person who has ultimate authority over the factory’s business.
Assuming that:
(I) Any one of the individual partners or members of a business or other group of persons will be regarded to be the occupant;
(ii) in the event of a corporation, any of the directors is considered the occupier:
(iii) In the case of a factory owned or controlled by the Central Government, a State Government, or a local government, the person or persons appointed by the Central Government, the State Government, or the local government, as the case may be, to manage the factory’s affairs shall be deemed to be the occupier:
Provided, however, that in the event of a ship being repaired or having maintenance work done on it at a dry dock that is available for rent,
(1) For the purposes of any thing provided for by or under this chapter, the owner of the dock is understood to be the occupier.
a) Sections 6, 7, 7A, 7B, 11, or 1
(b) Section 17, insofar as it pertains to providing and maintaining enough and appropriate illumination in and around the dock.
c) Sections 18, 19, 42, 46, 47, or 49, in respect to personnel engaged in such repair or maintenance.
(2) For the purposes of any matter provided for or under section 13, section 14, section 16, or section 17 (save as otherwise provided in this proviso) or Chapter IV (except section 27) or section 43, section 44, or section 45, the owner of the ship, his agent, master, or other officer-in-charge of the ship, or any person who contracts with such owner, agent, master, or other officer-in-charge to carry out the repair or maintenance work shall be deemed to be the occupier.
(a) his direct employees, as well as those hired by or via any agent;
(b) the equipment, plant, or premises in use by such owner, agent, master, or other officer-in-charge or person for the purpose of carrying out such repair or maintenance work.
Occupier’s Responsibilities
The following clauses of the Factories Act, 1948, clearly state the responsibilities of the occupier:
Occupier’s Notice (Section 7)
Before a factory engaged in a manufacturing process that is normally carried on for less than one hundred and eighty working days in the year resumes working, the occupier shall send a written notice to the Chief Inspector in respect of all establishments that come within the scope of the Act for the first time. For the purposes of this Act, any person found acting as manager, or if no such person is found, the occupier himself, shall be deemed to be the manager of the factory during any period during which no one has been designated as manager of a factory or during which the person designated does not manage the factory.
Occupier’s General Responsibilities (Section7A)
# To protect the health, safety, and well-being of all manufacturing employees while they are on the job.
# To create and maintain a manufacturing plant and work processes that are safe and do not endanger the employees’ health.
# To make preparations in the factory to ensure the safety of employees and the absence of health risks associated with the usage, handling, storage, and transportation of goods and substances.
# To provide all employees with the appropriate information, education, training, and supervision to guarantee their health and safety at work.
# To keep all places of work in the factory in a safe and healthy state, as well as to offer and maintain safe and risk-free access to and egress from them.
# To establish, maintain, or monitor a safe, healthy, and appropriate working environment in the factory for the employees in terms of amenities and arrangements for their welfare at work.
# To develop a written declaration of his overall policy on workplace health and safety, as well as the organisational and operational measures in place to carry out that policy.
Safety officers are appointed (Section 40-B)
In a factory, it is the responsibility of the occupier to appoint a safety officer:
(I) Where a thousand or more people are employed on a regular basis, or
(ii) Where, in the opinion of the State Government, any manufacturing process or operation is carried out, which process or operation poses any risk of bodily injury, poisoning, disease, or any other health hazard to the factory’s employees, if the State Government so requires by notification in the official Gazette.
Compulsory Information Disclosure by the Occupier (Section 41-B)
Occupant’s obligation to disclose information:
# The occupier of any factory with a hazardous process must notify the Chief Inspector and the local authorities in the way required.
# When registering a factory with a hazardous process, the occupier must establish a thorough policy for the health and safety of the employees employed therein, and inform the Chief Inspector and the local authorities of this policy
# Every occupier shall, with the approval of the Chief Inspector, prepare an on-site emergency plan and detailed disaster control measures for his factory, and make the safety measures required to be taken in the event of an accident known to the workers employed therein and to the general public living in the vicinity of the factory.
# With the prior approval of the Chief Inspector, the occupier of a factory involving a hazardous process shall lay down measures for the handling, usage, transportation, and storage of hazardous substances inside the factory premises, as well as the disposal of such substances outside the factory premises, and publicise them in the manner prescribed among the workers and the general public living in the vicinity.
In respect to Hazardous Process, the occupant has a specific responsibility (Section 41-C)
Every tenant of a factory employing any hazardous procedure shall-
# keep accurate and up-to-date health records (or medical records, as the case may be) of production employees.
# select people with the necessary credentials and expertise in dealing with hazardous materials
# Ensure that each employee has a medical checkup.
Participation of workers in the management of safety (Section 41-G)
The occupier shall establish a Safety Committee consisting of an equal number of workers and management representatives in every factory where a hazardous process or hazardous substances are used or handled to promote worker-management cooperation in maintaining proper safety and health at work and to review the measures taken in that regard on a regular basis.
Workers have the right to be alerted of impending threats. (Section 41-H of the Code of Federal Regulations)
If such occupier, agent, manager, or person in control of the factory or process is convinced about the presence of such imminent hazard, he or she must take immediate corrective measures and notify the action taken to the closest Inspector.
Canteens and seating areas are available (Section 42 to 49)
It is the occupier’s responsibility to provide all employees with welfare facilities such as lunch rooms, canteens, crèches, washing machines, first-aid kits, and so on, as well as to hire a welfare officer.
Wage-based annual leave (Section 79)
The occupier or manager of the factory, in agreement with the factory’s Works Committee constituted under section 3 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (14 of 1947), or a similar Committee constituted under any other Act, or, if there is no such Works Committee or similar Committee in the factory, in agreement with representatives of the workers therein chosen in the prescribed manner, may lodge with the Chief Industrial Disputes Officer.
Survey on Occupational Safety and Health (Section 91-A)
The occupier or manager of the factory, or any other person who purports to be in charge of the factory at the time, shall conduct safety and occupational health surveys, and such occupier, manager, or other person shall provide all necessary facilities, including facilities for the examination and testing of plant and machinery, as well as the collection of samples and other data for the survey.
Factory Manager Responsibilities
The following sections of the Factory Act of 1948 describe the responsibilities of a factory manager:
Workers have the right to be alerted of impending risk. (Section 41-H of the Code of Federal Regulations)
If such occupier, agent, manager, or person in control of the factory or process is convinced about the presence of such imminent risk in the factory where the worker is engaged in any hazardous activity, he must take immediate corrective measures and notify the action taken to the closest Inspector.
Adults should be aware of work times (Section 61)
The factory manager shall post and maintain, in accordance with the provisions of section 108, a notice of adult work periods, showing clearly for each day the periods during which adult workers may be required to work, fix the periods during which each relay of the group may be required to work, classify them into groups based on the nature of their work, and indicate the number of workers in each group.
Adult Workers’ Register (Section 62)
Every factory’s management must keep a record of adult employees that is accessible to the Inspector at all times during working hours or while any work is being done in the plant.
Wage-based annual leave (Section 79)
The occupier or manager of the factory, in agreement with the factory’s Works Committee constituted under section 3 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (14 of 1947), or a similar Committee constituted under any other Act, or, if there is no such Works Committee or similar Committee in the factory, in agreement with representatives of the workers therein chosen in the prescribed manner, may lodge with the Chief Industrial Disputes Officer.
Certain Dangerous Occurrences Should Be Recognized (Section 88A)
Certain harmful circumstances are brought to your attention. When any harmful event of the kind specified happens in a factory, whether or not it causes physical damage or disability, the factory manager must notify the appropriate authorities in the form and time specified.
Notification of a Specific Disease (Section 89)
When a manufacturing worker gets one of the diseases listed in 1[the Third Schedule], the factory management must notify the appropriate authorities in the manner and within the timeframe required.
Survey on Occupational Safety and Health (Section 91-A)
The occupier or manager of the factory, or any other person who purports to be in charge of the factory at the time, shall conduct safety and occupational health surveys, and such occupier, manager, or other person shall provide all necessary facilities, including facilities for the examination and testing of plant and machinery, as well as the collection of samples and other data for the survey.
Certain Accidents Should Be Recognized (Section 88)
When an accident occurs in a factory that results in death or bodily injury that prevents the person injured from working for 48 hours or more immediately following the accident, or is of such nature as may be prescribed in this regard, the factory manager shall send notice to such authorities, in such form and within such time, as may be prescribed to the Chief Inspector.