For some cos, it’s ‘Work from Office’
An FMCG company has been forcing its employees to come to office – even when some of them could have worked from home – while restrictions on activities are in force, a young engineer from Maharashtra has claimed.And not just that; some employees were pulled up by the HR department of this company because they took Covid-19 tests found to be positive, creating unrest among the remaining workforce.”Please keep this anonymous as I don’t want to be the reason they lose their job. But I just wanted to say this to someone. It’s so sad,” the engineer told ET last week.With the second wave of Covid-19 infections prompting many states to impose restrictions and curfews, some companies in Mumbai, Pune, New Delhi and Bengaluru are not only insisting that their employees come in to work but also trying out ways to get around curbs on activity and movement.This is even for roles that can be performed remotely, according to many people, including corporate employees or their friends and family members, who spoke to ET, requesting anonymity for fear they would be tracked down and lose their jobs.In New Delhi and Mumbai, these companies are allegedly issuing fake essential worker IDs or fraudulent permission letters for employees, and not disclosing Covid-19 cases to authorities to avoid shutting offices down, the people said.Many have simply instructed employees to say they are from a company that’s qualified for essential services even if they’re not or belong to a sister concern that does not fall under essential services.Some industry veterans confirmed the prevalence of these practices. “I know people who have bribed their way to get *essential services* clearance for their factories just so they didn’t need to close down during the lockdown. Incredulous India indeed,” tweeted Ashok Lalla (@Ashoklalla), a popular digital business advisor based in Bengaluru.”I won’t be able to name them,” tweeted Jigar Shah (@FCSJigarShah), a Mumbai-based member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, “but know of 1-2 companies for sure where attendance is mandatory. Have also heard that employees are getting railway pass as ward-boy of the hospital so they can travel for work easily in local [trains]. Not all owners are willing to slow down their pace.”‘Essential Worker’ IDs, StickersET received information on 25 such companies, big and small, and was able to independently verify a few of the major ones. The companies are not being identified at the request of those who provided the information.”We are being given essential worker IDs and told to report to office. Free RT-PCR tests are being promised. The labs are already deluged with test cases and here we are adding to their burden,” said an employee of a real estate group in Mumbai.”We thought the current lockdown in Mumbai will make them change the rules, but they have told us to put the yellow sticker (implying staff of essential exempted services) on vehicles while coming to office as per the new guidelines,” another added.In the National Capital, the fear of getting caught doesn’t seem to be a deterrent. An employee of a New Delhi-based company that sells organic products online said they have been given fake permits on office letterheads. “Some of us were caught by the police recently and asked to return. But the practice continues,” this person said.Executive DecisionAt one prominent Bengaluru startup, work from office is not mandatory “but the founder keeps calling for meetings so everyone ends up going,” said a few people.At the Pune branch of an international ITeS firm, employees have to come to office despite work-from-home guidelines “because their manager refuses to let them WFH,” said a close relative of a staffer. “Two people from the team tested positive recently.”The sales department of a popular hospitality chain continues to operate in Mumbai’s Andheri suburb, said a senior executive. “The office is locked from inside in case someone comes to check,” the executive said.An educational institute under construction in Navi Mumbai “is not reporting positive cases of labourers on-site since it runs the risk of the site being asked to shut down,” one person said.A clothing company in Mumbai’s Lower Parel has allegedly obtained essential services passes for producing masks, “but is actually using that as an excuse to call in tailors to make new collection samples and items for export,” said a person aware of the matter. “Work continued even after some tailors tested positive for Covid and had to take leave.”Workers of an outsourcing solutions company in Thane reckons their company obtained the essential services tag because one of their clients is in the medical insurance sector. Staff at a content company’s office in Mumbai’s Marol area wonder why they are forced to come to office to make TV promos that can be created from anywhere. Meanwhile, New Delhi has implemented a lockdown till April 26 and other major metros may follow as they get clobbered by the second wave of Covid-19.Virologist Shahid Jameel said employees working in offices are at the highest risk of transmission because the coronavirus spreads through airborne sources, making closed air-conditioned spaces with recirculated air extremely harmful and avoidable.”If companies are compelling non-essential workers to work behind closed doors, not only are they flouting laws but they are also exposing employees to avoidable risk,” added K Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India. “It’s a violation of human rights.”Officials DifferHowever, Maharashtra and Karnataka have taken divergent stands on the functioning of workplaces while curbs are in place.Aseem Gupta, principal secretary of the department of relief and rehabilitation in Maharashtra, urged employees to complain about such cases to the government, the police or the industry department “and we would make an example of them.””We have already issued orders that if an establishment is wilfully flouting the law, we will shut it down completely as long as the Covid-19 pandemic stays notified as a disaster by the Centre,” Gupta said.”Every day, Mumbai Police has been taking action against establishments if we see them violating rules,” said S Chaitanya, DCP, Mumbai Police. “Any company or establishment that is violating government norms on restrictions by making their workers come to work, even though they are not of essential services, will face action.”Karnataka deputy chief minister CN Ashwathnarayan said most companies there have adopted remote working and work from home has become the preferred choice. But he also said, “There could be some stray cases of employers asking staff to come to office. They know what works best for them and we do not want to interfere in their internal matters. We have not placed a total ban on working from office.”Ashwathnarayan also said companies that ask employees to work from office should ensure Covid-19 protocols are in place. “If a person is tested positive in an office environment, primary contacts should be made to undergo the test. I do not think IT companies and startups are flouting these norms,” he said.As for those who are indeed flouting norms, Jameel, who is also the director of Trivedi School of Biosciences at Ashoka University, said that enforcement may be of little help if the employer is not worried about the well-being of the staff. “This cannot be solved with a danda (stick),” he said.However, he reiterated that such actions put pressure on the exhausted and stretched healthcare and essential workforce. “And we must remember that hospital beds don’t make a facility, people do.”(With inputs from Krishna Kumar and Akshatha M)
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