Mangalore :

Soon all employees in the 30 districts in the state will be under Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) cover.

At present, over 17.70 lakh employees attached to 55,000 factories and business establishments in 27 districts are benefiting from the ESIC scheme. ESIC has plans to expand the scheme benefits to workers in Bidar, Chikmagalur and Kodagu districts.

Union minister of state for labour and employment Kodikunnil Suresh said after inaugurating the sub regional office (SRO) of ESIC here on Thursday that a survey in this regard has begun in these three districts. “While Bidar will be brought under Bangalore SRO, Chikmagalur and Kodagu will come under Gulbarga and Mysore SROs respectively,” he said. He added that ESIC has disbursed 50,000 payments amounting to about Rs 10 crore in 2013 in the state.

He said that the corporation has tie-ups with 85 reputed hospitals and nursing homes for providing cashless super specialty treatment in the state. “A total of Rs 126.45 crore has been spent towards super specialty treatment of employees in 2012-13,” he added.

Suresh said that government-level discussions are on to introduce national floor level minimum wages (NFLMW). “The cabinet has already approved the proposed amendments to the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 that will make NFLMW statutory. The matter has been forwarded to the law ministry for its nod. We will pursue the matter to ensure minimum wages for all workers in organized and unorganized sectors in the nation. A Variable Dearness Allowance (VDA) will also be added to the basic wage to neutralize the effect of price rise. At present, VDA is non-statutory and revised generally twice a year. The new act will make VDA mandatory,” the minister said.

Labour minister PT Parameshwara Naik presided over the event, while MP Nalin Kumar Kateel was the guest.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Mangalore / TNN / October 25th, 2013