Andhra Pradesh government assures to protect workers' rights despite increased working hours
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Vijayawada: State govt has assured that it is committed to protect the rights of the workers despite increasing the daily working hours from 8 to 10 as the weekly cap of 48 hours will remain in force.
The amendments to the labour laws have been initiated to allow better scheduling, especially during peak business periods, without increasing overall workload. Similarly, changes to overtime rules, replacing the monthly 50-hour cap with a 144-hour quarterly limit, will provide seasonal flexibility without raising annual overtime, said govt.
Labour commissioner MV Seshagiri Babu explained that the amendment to Section 73 only exempts very small establishments (with fewer than 20 workers) from select provisions, while key protections remain fully in force including women's safety during night shifts, paid leave, holidays, and registration.
"Central laws on wages, termination, gratuity, and child labour will continue to apply and be enforced. These reforms are part of a broader effort to modernise labour regulations, support small businesses, and align with contemporary work practices especially in sectors with fluctuating footfalls like retail and services," he explained.
Seshagiri Babu said that it is a fact that the daily working-hour limit for employees in shops is proposed to be increased from 8 hours to 10 hours.
However, it is important to highlight that the weekly limit remains unchanged at 48 hours. This means that employees cannot be made to work more than 48 hours in a week, ensuring that the overall workload does not increase and workers are not overburdened. This change is aimed at providing greater scheduling flexibility for businesses and employees alike, particularly to meet seasonal or peak demand without breaching weekly work-hour protections.
However, the labour commissioner did not elaborate whether the department has manpower to check the workload of the workers on a daily and weekly basis.
The proposed amendment to Section 73 of the AP Shops and Establishments Act seeks to exempt commercial establishments employing fewer than 20 workers from most provisions of the Act, while retaining key safeguards such as registration, women's safety during night shifts (Section 23), paid leave (Section 30), and mandatory holidays (Section 31). This ensures that core worker rights remain fully protected despite the broader exemption.
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