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Factories Act 1965 (Act XXV of 1934)
adopted with the objective of regulating the appointment of workers,
their wages and the working conditions in factories, including
health and hygiene, safety, welfare, working hours, leave and
holidays, and punishments and penalties for both the owners and
workers for non-compliance of the requirements. East Pakistan
Factories Act 1965 was published in the Dhaka Gazette Extraordinary
in September 1965. The government of Bangladesh adopted the Act and
declared it enforceable throughout the country. It has 11 chapters
and 116 main sections.
The Act defines and clarifies various terms
included in it. Important among such terms are: adolescent, adult,
child, day, explosive substance, factory, machinery, manufacturing
process, occupier, prime mover, shift in factory, transmission
machinery, working hour, and wages. It describes the power of the
government relating to declaration of departments as separate
factories, notification by the chief inspector before commencement
of work, and declaration of any factory as seasonal (depending upon
the number of working days in a year or in a particular season). It
incorporates the provisions for obtaining approval of factory plans,
including the construction or extension, class or description of
factories from the chief inspector. It also specifies the fees for
licensing and registration.
The Act incorporates rules for appointing the
chief inspector, inspectors and certifying surgeons by the
government for overseeing the purposes of the Act and certifying the
fitness of workers. According to the Act, every factory is to be
maintained clean and free from effluvia arising from any drain,
privy or other nuisance. Effective arrangements are to be made in
every factory for the disposal of wastes and effluents, prevention
of accumulation of dust and fume, and proper ventilation and
maintenance of room temperature.
The Act requires that factory must ensure
adequate fire safety measures, appropriate means of escaping in case
of fire, and protection against dangerous and accident-prone parts
of machinery, electric and mechanical devices, self-acting machines,
etc. Workers are to be given proper training before they are
employed on dangerous machines. Controlling appliances of cranes and
other lifting machines, hoists and lifts must be of good
construction, sound material and adequate strength. Other sources of
dangers, such as pits, sumps, openings in floors, etc, should be
securely covered or fenced and effective screens or suitable goggles
should be provided to workers to protect their eyes. Every factory
is to have adequate and suitable facilities for washing and bathing
and provide first-aid medicines and appliances. Canteens and rooms
for children should also be maintained. In every factory wherein
five hundred or more workers are employed, the occupier should
employ a number of welfare officers as may be prescribed.
Under the Act no adult worker shall be allowed to
work in a factory for more than forty-eight hours in a week or on
weekly holidays unless stated otherwise. Workers may, however, be
put to work on off days, but only with the provision for an equal
number of compensatory holidays. Other rules regarding working hours
of adults relate to daily working hours, interval for rest or meals,
spreadover, night shifts and prohibition of overlapping shifts,
extra allowances for overtime, restriction on double employment,
notice of periods of work, and registration of adult workers. The
Act prohibits employment of any child under the age of 14 in any
factory. An adolescent may be employed only after granting a
certificate of fitness issued by a certifying surgeon. Working hours
for such young persons, if employed, shall not be more than five
hours a day. They shall not be allowed to work between 7 pm and 7
am. In every factory, a notice of the periods of work for children
shall be displayed and a register maintained. The inspector of
factories is empowered to order the medical examination of a child
worker if required.
Under different circumstances and conditions laid
down in various sections of the Act, workers are entitled to have
certain days as annual leave with wages, festival holidays, and
casual and sick leave. However, the workers may be allowed some
leave without pay. The government is empowered to make rules
regarding leave and holidays for factory workers. The Act has
provisions regarding dangerous operations in any factory, notices of
certain accidents, dangerous occurrences and certain diseases.
Penalties for employers indicated in the Act include general penalty
for offences, such as obstructing inspectors, wrongful disclosure of
information or disclosure of restricted information, and employment
of child workers.
The Factories Act has provisions for making
appeal by parties concerned in factories, such as owner/occupiers,
managers, inspectors and workers. The government can formulate rules
for factories for the submission of returns to regulatory
authorities. Workers are prohibited to interfere in any affairs of
the factory, which may cause loss or damage to the factory itself or
to other workers. The Act also made a provision for repeal and it
declared that notwithstanding the repeal, any order or notification
issued, any action taken, any proceeding commenced or anything done
under any provision of the Act shall continue in force. [Abul Kalam
Azad]
Source: http://banglapedia.search.com.bd/HT/F_0001.htm |
