Does "Work from Home" Add a New Dimension to Labor Laws: An Analysis

INTRODUCTION

Work from home is a growing trend in today’s work environment, in which employees can easily plug-in from just anywhere they are. A work from home policy is nothing but an agreement between the employer and the employees who prefer to have the work from home privileges. The policy defines the expectations, responsibilities, the eligibility and the other work from home guidelines. In short, it ensures that all employees understand what is required of them when they choose to work from home.

As the terror of Covid-19 continues to spread, many employers have already considered the work from home set up quite seriously, to avoid reduced productivity. Top companies like Google and Microsoft have arranged for enhanced teleconferencing tools to make work from home more comfortable than ever.

Work From Home is a concept where the employee can do his or her job from home. Work from home gives flexible working hours to the employee as well as the job for the employer is done with ease. Work from home is helpful to delivering work-life balance to the employee, and also parallel helps the company to get the work done. Nowadays, most of the employers are offering this option to their employees.

ANALYSIS: WORK FROM HOME ADDS A NEW DIMENSION TO LABOUR LAW

Whatever be the circumstances, companies need a defined work from home policy to make it work. The work from the home policy can be tailored as per the company’s needs and requirements. In the due course, it can be modified according to the company’s specific values. The COVID-19 crisis has accelerated the transition from work in office spaces to working remotely. India Inc. has embraced virtual workspaces, with numerous HR leaders stating that work from home (WFH) is here to stay even after the resolution of the crisis. While everyone is happy with this arrangement in the short run, conflicts between the employer and employee will arise in the long haul as there are no laws in India governing WFH.[1]

Some countries have specific laws that support work from home (WFH) but India is far from legally endorsing this ‘New Normal’. For example[2] in the Philippines, employers are required to develop a telecommuting program that incorporates work hours, alternative workplaces, cost of equipment, occupational safety and health, applicable benefits and observance of data privacy. The employer is also required to ensure that telecommuting employees are given the same treatment as their peers working at the employer’s premises.

Labour and employees play a significant role in the corporate sector. Indian laws exist so that workers and employees are treated well in work environments and help protect their rights. Such laws also ensure that employers value their employees for their expertise and are compensated accordingly. With the outbreak of the COVID - 19, many employers are struggling to prepare for the worst, including work from home, leaves, compensation, insurance and numerous other factors. This situation not only brings about a worry with reporting heads, managers and the like but also with senior management including the board of directors and stakeholders of a company.

[3]Human resource consultancy firms say companies are increasingly trying to understand how liabilities change for them going forward, as a vast workforce remains at home. “Some of the labour laws may not cater to a work-from-home environment,
Officials are of the view that labour laws should be amended in a way to safeguard employees while also providing flexibility to employers.

Once work from home is enabled at a large scale, people may want to work for only a certain number of hours a day, as opposed to the norm of 8 hours a day; this could benefit women, university students and handicapped greatly,” said a government official adding that “work is going on to thrash out the details currently”[4].

“Current labour laws will need to be revisited to provide industry the flexibility to enable working hours and shift timings. Moreover, the role of employer with respect to safety and health measures at the workplace will require a rethink as the home becomes the new workplace.”

DATA ANALYSIS

Since the lockdown in March, India’s IT industry has moved nearly 90% of its workforce to deliver services from home. The government categorized the industry as essential services and permitted exemptions similar to those granted to units in SEZs and STPIs by the department of telecom. The successful transition is now prompting large-scale shifts in work models across the industry, with India’s largest IT services firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) looking at 75% of its workforce working remotely by 2025.

CP Gurnani, CEO of Tech Mahindra, said that in the first phase, the company may start “with 25% employees” working from home. “Most organisations will break away from large campuses to distributed centers’. Work from home doesn’t mean work from home forever. HCL Technologies has seen productivity gains due to remote working and has proposed a model where 50% of its staff will work from home while the rest will be operating from office and this will be on a rotational basis.[5]

CONCLUSION

Flexible work arrangements not only benefit the employee but the employer as well. Remote work, work from home, and telecommuting can truly enhance productivity, happiness, reduce employee attrition, and decrease the businesses’ overall operating costs. I think the government has been very flexible and provided full support and they've extended it till July 31. So, if we have to do this, I think they should look at some of the regulations as well, and how that will play out as labor laws and tax laws. the government wants to fast forward this from five years to say 2-3 years, it will have to quickly enable a long-term policy regime for it,”

Kunjan Mehta is a third year law student at GLS Law College, Ahemdabad.

Disclaimer: The article is an original submission of the Author. Niti Manthan does not hold any liability arising out of this article. Kindly refer to our terms of use or write to us in case of any concern.

[1] https://blog.vantagecircle.com/work-from-home/

[2]https://worldconferences.net/proceedings/icssr2016/fullpapers/IC%20108%20UNDERSTANDING%20THE%20WORK%20AT%20HOME%20CONCEPT.pdf

[3] https://analyticsindiamag.com/research-impact-of-work-from-home-on-analytics-functions/

[4] https://iclg.com/practice-areas/employment-and-labour-laws-and-regulations/india

[5] https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/it-seeks-changes-in-laws-as-work-from-home-set-to-become-norm/articleshow/75684748.cms