The Delhi Assembly on Wednesday moved Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2015 and Minimum Wages Amendment Bill 2015.
With this, the Government wants to facilitate job security for working journalists and minimum wages to the labourers working in the national Capital.
While moving the Bill, Minister of Transport and labour Gopal Rai said, “Conditions of labours and journalists are worsening by the day. They are not paid well according to their work. With the passage of both the Bills, they will get huge relief in their job security and minimum wages.”
Talking about the worsening condition of working journalists, the State Government has sought to implement Majithia Commission, with amendments such as `200 penalty per day that earlier was `200 per month with six months imprisonment to the offender who fail to pay salary on time.
And if any reporter complains to the Government about delay in salary payment, then his/her due salary will be paid five times to that of the salary.
“If a concerned reporter doesn’t receive his salary on time, the defaulter will get one year imprisonment and `1,000 will be deducted from his account daily for around a year. Contractual journalist will also be included in the Majithia Commission,” said Kejriwal.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said in 1992 the Supreme Court gave its judgment for the minimum wages for the uplift of labours, however it was never followed. “We are now including the then judgment of the apex court into the definition of Minimum Wages Bill in its definition,” he said.
All the minimum wages will be transferred to the bank account of the labours and the violators will get three years of imprisonment. All the information of the labours will be uploaded on the website.
Taking quick action on the suggestions for the labours at the construction sites given by leader of Opposition Vijender Gupta, the CM said, “For the children of labours at the construction sites, schools, anganwadi centres and mobile hospitals will be commissioned in the coming days. For this, we are considering ‘construction fund’ for them.”