Labour secretary M Sathiyavathy, on February 8, 2017, clarified that the payment of workers’ statutory dues in the construction sector, is the sole responsibility of the principal employer.
Addressing the 42nd Annual Day celebrations of MES Builders Association of India, Sathiyavathy categorically said social security amenities, such as pension and provident fund contribution of construction workers, should be paid by the principal employers and not by their contractors.
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In a statement, she, however, added that unless the responsibility for the payment of such dues is specified and clearly stated in the contract agreement between principal employers and contractors, pension and provident fund contributions should be paid by the principal employers.
She also stated that if confusion still prevails on these issues, there should be separate consultations with the stakeholders, as the government is committed to implementing the social security schemes.
“This is so, because workers in particular and construction workers in general, lack social security at times when the issue of social security is well established in all economies of scale. The government is also making sure that all payments of the wages to workers should be done by crossed cheques and digital mode, for which no excuses would be entertained,” she said in the statement.
