G.O. Ms. No. 64, Permitting All Shops and Establishments to Keep Open on All 365 Days, 2020
The Labour and Employment Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu issued G.O. Ms. No. 64, Labour and Employment (K2), dated 19 March 2020, permitting all establishments in Tamil Nadu to remain open on all 365 days for a further three years from 23 March 2020, unless revoked. The permission continued a 2017 notification and was conditional on weekly holidays, working-hour limits, bank payment of wages, safety measures and other employee protections.
What the notification governs
G.O. Ms. No. 64, Labour and Employment (K2), dated 19 March 2020, was issued under the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishments Act, 1947. It exempted all establishments in Tamil Nadu from the weekly closing requirement and allowed them to remain open throughout the year for a further three years from 23 March 2020, unless the permission was revoked.
The notification concerns the operation of shops and establishments and the treatment of their employees. It applies to employers, managers and employees rather than creating or changing rights in land or buildings.
Who is affected
The permission applied to all establishments in Tamil Nadu. Employers and managers choosing to operate throughout the year had to comply with the listed conditions and with the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishments Act, 1947 and the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishments Rules, 1948.
Employees remained entitled to weekly rest, limits on working hours, payment through a bank account and specified workplace protections.
Main conditions
Employers and managers were required to:
- Give every employee one holiday each week on a rotation basis.
- Record employee details in Form S and display them in a conspicuous place.
- Display daily details of employees who were on holiday or leave.
- Credit wages, including overtime wages, to employees' savings bank accounts.
- Limit work to eight hours a day and forty eight hours a week. Work including overtime could not exceed ten hours a day or fifty four hours a week.
- Provide restrooms, washrooms, safety lockers and other basic amenities.
- Avoid requiring women employees to work after 8.00 p.m. in normal circumstances.
- Obtain written consent before allowing a woman employee to work between 8.00 p.m. and 6.00 a.m., and provide adequate protection for her dignity, honour and safety.
- Provide transport for women working in shifts and display a transport availability notice at the main entrance.
- Maintain an operative Internal Complaints Committee against sexual harassment where women were employed.
Enforcement
The Labour and Employment Department notification stated that penal action could be initiated against an employer or manager for violations. This included employees working on holidays or beyond normal duty hours without a proper overtime indent, as well as breaches of statutory requirements or the notification's conditions.
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Common questions
Did the notification allow every shop in Tamil Nadu to open every day?
Yes. It permitted all establishments in Tamil Nadu to remain open on all 365 days for a further three years from 23 March 2020, unless revoked, subject to the listed conditions.
Could an employer make an employee work seven days a week?
No. Every employee had to receive one holiday each week on a rotation basis, with employee and holiday details displayed at the establishment.
Could women employees work at night under this notification?
Women could not normally be required to work after 8.00 p.m. A woman could work between 8.00 p.m. and 6.00 a.m. only with her written consent and adequate protection for her dignity, honour and safety.
What were the maximum working hours?
Ordinary work was limited to eight hours a day and forty eight hours a week. Including overtime, work could not exceed ten hours a day or fifty four hours a week.
