Harassment and Exploitation of private employees are rising underneath the Covid-19. Employees have been subjected to threats of termination, forced resignation, salary deduction and mental pressure by their managers.
In the shadow of Covid19, private employee’s exploitation is rising. Under the deprived economy condition, employers are trying to reduce the manpower and limit the operational cost. Companies are playing many tricks to jeopardize their workers. Managers are pushing their labourers, very hard, to over perform. Currently, employees are under severe mental and financial tremor. Globally, many reports have also been published on the anguish of women staff members.
Looking at the circumstances, “YouAware” wants to inform people and the Government of the exploitation and harassment faced by the private employees during this Covid- 19 situation in the hope of a possible solution.
Let’s discuss the kind of hassle faced by private employees underneath the Corona Pandemic.
1. Termination of Job:
Due to the economic crisis, in the corona pandemic, several business enterprises are lessening their operational cost. That’s why they are terminating the employees. Contract employees and employees under third party payroll are in the first line of the target. Most middle aged senior staff are eliminated in these processes. Lower wage employees are replacing their position. Some industries are also sending their employees on non-paid long leaves.
Realizing the financial outbreak and sustenance of workmen, a directive has been issued by the Union Ministry of Labor and Employment during the lockdown directing public and private companies to refrain from terminating services of employees and declaring layoffs.
But as there is no clear legal implication of the Government order rather it is a simple advisory to employers of Public and Private Establishment, many employees have been terminated since the lockdown. Several IT companies during the lockdown have been adopting the process of mass termination over phone calls. Many IT employees have sought PIL in Supreme Court as against the termination and lay-off done by the company.
2. Forced Resignation:
Forced Resignation has now become MNCs and Private Organization’s new HR Policy to hide the layoff process. Amid Covid19 crisis, the labour ministry requested companies not to cut salaries and lay off employees? However as companies business margins are comparatively low under the global economic crisis, they are now pressuring employees to give resignation from their side.
Some IT employees have told CNN News 18 that the threats issued to them for resigning were barely subtle. They were told, they would have no future, their services will be terminated, and they will be blacklisted. The pressure tactics too are very strong.
50-year old Rajeev Velarasan (name changed), an IT employee currently lives under tremendous stress. He finds it hard to believe how his performance suddenly dipped to two stars from the usual four stars given to him for three of the four terms.
He narrated how he was pressurized to resign from his own side? He said, “I was told, ‘If you don’t resign, you will face consequences. Your career will be spoilt. We will blacklist you. We will terminate you.’ I was threatened. When I still put my foot down, they said, they will trigger my resignation from the backend.”
39-year old Veerbhadra (name changed) was also threatened similarly. “I was surrounded by four persons in a closed cabin. They asked me to resign. When I told them that the process was not transparent and not justified, I was threatened. They told me, they will terminate me. I kept asking for clarifications, they kept pressuring me for a week. I knew that forced resignation is illegal. So I kept asking for details,” he said.
Note: Some employers are implementing the transfer policy to their workmen. They are releasing the immediate transfer order to their assistants. Employers are aware that in the current Covid situation, it is difficult for an employee, to relocate with the family! An employee will definitely break down in this situation and give resignation from their side.
3. Held Appointment:
Employers are also holding up the appointments made by them to reduce their company’s cost.
Mr. Silambarasan Kannan, a Software engineer, who described his painful story of unemployment during this Covid-19.
He said: I got an offer letter from HCL in March. Hence I resigned from my previous organization. My actual joining date was 2nd of April but it was moved to 14th of May, again it was moved to 11th of June due to Covid-19 issue. But I reached HR on 10th June. HR told your project to be ramped down so we stopped hiring. You can wait, we will arrange a new project or else you can search any other company. But still, they didn't arrange an interview.
He narrated how he is unemployed from April to till date. Almost 4 months completed but they didn't provide him, any proper response. He had explained his financial situation. But still, they did the same. He was released from his previous organizations only for this offer!
Now he has lost his four months’ salary (4*30000=Rs-120000). How can he recover from this loss?
4. Salary Deduction:
Many Companies prefer slashing of their employee’s salary to ensure their own survival.
“No Salary: Many employees are also working without any salary. Employers are not putting a single salary and exploiting their employees to work or resign from the Job!! Currently it is difficult to get another job, lots of employees are working without salary, in a hope that they will be continued and get salary after the pandemic recovery! “
5. OverTime:
Private Employees are now working 16 to 17 hours per day to meet the company business deadline. But they are not compensated against any O.T wages.
This idea, that longer working days are necessary in the current situation, finds a proponent in Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy, who believes that workers would need to put in 60-hour work-weeks – 10 hours a day, 6 days of the week – for the next 2-3 years to help revive economic growth.
However this idea is not only widely accepted in the IT industry but it has been put considerable impact on MSME and small scale industries where labourers are forced to work for 12 hours per day.
Four state governments (Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan) have passed orders that allow for the increase in working hours from 8 hours to 12 hours a day, a controversial order as global norms mandate an 8-hour working day – or a 48-hour work week.
But it is a move that shifts the burden disproportionately onto workers. Unless wages increase in proportion, it would worsen distribution by reducing the wage share. Moreover, unless investment rises, and businesses decide to create more jobs, having workers work longer hours might just lead to a reduction in employment.
6. Women Exploitation:
However, these days’ employees are pressured to work up to 16 to 17 hours per day to stay competitive. Women, on the other hand, are in dual pressure of both their office and family obligations.
In the Covid-19 situation: as family demands are more at that time: women are under much more pressure. The situation is particularly difficult for women where they are trying to work from home while homeschooling their children or caring for their spouse and other family members.
Domestic violence is also advancing during covid19. Reports of sexual exploitation and crime against women are roaring across the different parts of the world.
Recently a report in Forbes has come that “How the pandemic negatively impacts women more than men.”According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women accounted for 55% of the 20.5 million workers who became unemployed in April, compared to a 13% unemployment rate for men. There are a number of reasons why this has occurred including that women comprise a majority of primary caregivers and workers in the service industry, two areas that have been most impacted by Covid-19.
7. Favoritism:
Favoritism has always its own aspect in every Industry. Recently the HR policy in most of the companies is to cut down the employee figure and save the operational cost. At this time favoritism plays a very great role! Managers are favoring their own candidate and harassing other candidates. In the slashing time, it has always been seen that it’s not a clear and transparent play!!! Many talents are also victimized in this process. Insider and outsider feelings become much more prevalent in this kind of situation. Social discrimination, Racism and Xenophobic attacks are very usual in this type of circumstances.
8. Covid Pressure:
Only the IT industry has declared Work from home till 31st December. But there are some companies who are still operating secretly. Their HR Personnel are routing the mail that employees will continue to work from home (WFH) but on the other side manager and employers are threatening their employees and using abusive language to come to office in the danger Covid19 situation! They are also hiding the Covid positive report of the employees from their company and forcing other employees to come to office. They are also sacking the employees who are suffering from Covid19.
9. No SOP:
Many companies are not following the standard operating procedure. As there is no audit system and no one is there to look, many organizations are operating without any SOP. They are not maintaining the Social distance norms and hygienic principle at office premises. Employers are putting their employee’s life under Covid risk.
10. Covid Claim:
Proprietors are making their employees responsible in the foul play of getting Covid Infection. Employers are forcing the workmen to come to the office. But if the employee catches the Covid infection then it is the responsibility of the employees to bear the high Covid expenses of the hospital. Organization has nothing to do with this and if the employee dies from Covid then there is also no compensation from the employer side.
Special Note: Now in every forum debates on “Mental Health” is exploring. But how can we forget the major sector i.e. labour? In the distressful Covid19 situation labourers are subjected to both “financial and mental exploitation.”They are working day and night. They are in fear of losing their jobs!!! Their family life is also imbalanced. They have been subjected to poor mental health during the acute Covid condition.
Appeal to Government:
Looking at the aggravated situation, “YouAware” appealed to the Government to kindly look at this situation. To make our India “economically independent” labours are the key players. They should not be subjected to exploitation and harassment by employers in this stressed pandemic condition. Government should frame a certain strategic move towards the country’s renovation against the present concentric system where both Industry and workmen flexibility serve hands to hands for the development of the nation. So in the dark side of Covid Crisis, the Government should address the problems faced by labourers and provide some standardized solutions where employees' fundamental right i.e. "right against exploitation" must be preserved.
Appeal to Entrepreneurs:
This is a crucial time where the entire globe is suffering from a pandemic. The only need of the current time is humanity. In the deprived economic time, we agree that every industry has been affected. But there is saying that bad times are only the opportunity to grow. Slashing of the employees, cutting their salaries can never be a right solution for any entrepreneur. Rather entrepreneurs should think of alternative ways to create more and more employment and generate the revenues by using their resources. They should enhance their visions and broaden their mind and create the chances for youth to utilize their new mind in expansion of the industry. But instead of looking at the broader out- scope, simply exploiting the key growth makers i.e. labourers, is simply presenting the antagonistic approach of the employer which thinks only about their profit without any moral ethics!