Background
The Gujarat Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2019 was enacted to regulate the employment conditions of workers in shops, commercial establishments, residential hotels, restaurants, theatres and other establishments across Gujarat. It replaced the earlier Act with an objective to ensure better regulation of service conditions, enhance worker welfare, and bring uniformity in compliance through digitized processes.
Applicability
The Act applies to all shops and commercial establishments in Gujarat employing 10 or more workers. However, certain provisions relating to working conditions, health, safety, and welfare also extend to establishments employing less than 10 workers.
Compliance requirement under the Act in accordance with the Rules
The employer of the establishment is required to register the establishment under the Shops and Establishment Act of the respective state within the prescribed time from the date of commencement of work. The employer must apply for registration within 60 days from the commencement of work in the said establishment.
The period and hours of work in a week shall be informed to all workers in writing and sent to the Inspector electronically or otherwise. The maximum number of hours in a day shall not exceed nine, and in a week shall not exceed forty-eight. The spread over of a worker shall not exceed ten and a half hours in a day.
Every employer shall submit the Annual Return in Form-Q to the Inspector within one month after completion of the calendar year ending on the 31st December. It shall be submitted online where online access is available.
Any changes in the certificate of registration shall be submitted in Form G to the Inspector within thirty days from the date the change took place.
Application for closure of establishment should be made within thirty days from the date of closure of the establishment to the Inspector. In case of more than ten employees, the employer shall inform the Inspector in Form-H, and in case of less than ten employees, the employer shall inform in Form-I.
The premises of every establishment shall be kept clean and free from infection having proper ventilation and lighting. No rubbish, filth or debris shall be allowed to accumulate on the premises in such position that effluvia therefrom can arise within the establishment or its surroundings.
Women workers shall be required or allowed to work in a shop or establishment between 9.00 p.m. to 6.00 a.m. only after obtaining the consent of such women workers in Form-J, subject to such conditions as may be specified in the order of the Inspector
Where a worker is required to work on a day of his rest, he shall be entitled to wages at the rate of twice his ordinary rate of wages.
A list of persons working in shift along with their shift timings shall be displayed in Form L. There shall be not less than twelve consecutive hours of rest or gap between the last shift and night shift whenever a worker is changed from day shift to night shift and also from night shift to day shift.
Every employer registered under section 6 shall inform the Inspector in Form-S the names, designation, and brief nature of duties of such persons who are discharging managerial functions.
Every employer shall inform in Form-T the names of such persons who are occupying positions of confidential character in an establishment. However, the number of such persons shall not be more than one percent of the total strength of workers of the establishment, subject to a maximum of fifty persons.
The Name Board of every establishment shall be preferably in Gujarati language. The employer may also have the Name Board in any other language in addition to Gujarati.
A Muster-Roll cum Wages Register in Form-P shall be maintained unless a Wages Register in Form-B and a Muster Roll in Form-D is maintained as prescribed in Rule 3 of the Schedule to Ease of Compliance under various Labour Laws (Gujarat) Rules, 2017.
Every employer shall provide at the place of work first-aid facilities as may be prescribed in Rule 24 of the Gujarat Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 2020.
Measures as directed by the local Fire Protection Department shall be adopted to protect the premises and the workers therein from the danger of fire.
A notice in Form-O shall be displayed by 31st January of each calendar year containing the names of workers whose leaves are carried forward.
The employer shall provide each worker with a Leave Book in Form N.
Every employer shall provide each worker with an Identity Card as specified in Form-M.
A weekly holiday with wages shall be provided to every worker of at least twenty-four hours. A notice in Form K shall be displayed on the notice board and website for the weekly holiday, and a copy shall be sent to the Inspector.
The employer shall pay overtime wages where a worker in any shop or establishment has worked beyond nine hours a day or forty-eight hours a week at the rate of twice his ordinary rate of wages. The total number of overtime hours shall not exceed 125 hours in a period of three months.
If a worker is denied a weekly holiday, compensatory leave in lieu thereof shall be given within two months of such weekly holiday.
Workers are entitled to seven days of casual leave with wages in every calendar year. Such leave shall be credited into the account of the worker in the beginning of the calendar year but shall lapse if unavailed at the end of the year.
Every worker shall be entitled to seven days of leave on medical grounds with wages in every calendar year. Such leave shall be credited into the account of the worker in the beginning of the calendar year but shall lapse if unavailed at the end of the year.
A worker who has worked for 240 days or more in a shop or an establishment during a calendar year shall be allowed, during the subsequent calendar year, leave with wages for a number of days calculated at the rate of one day for every twenty days of work performed by him during the previous calendar year.
A worker shall be entitled to eight paid festival holidays with wages in a year, namely, 26th January, 15th August, and 2nd October, along with five such other festival holidays as may be agreed between employer and workers. If a worker works on any such day, he shall be paid double the wages.
In every shop or establishment wherein thirty or more women workers are employed, there shall be provided and maintained a suitable room as a creche for the use of children of such workers.
The employer shall provide and maintain in the shop or establishment, wherein not less than one hundred workers are employed or ordinarily employed, a canteen for the use of its workers as per the specifications provided in Rule 25.
Penalties & Punishments
Where no specific penalty is provided, any contravention of the provisions of the Act or Rules shall attract a fine up to Rs. 50,000. The total fine shall not exceed Rs. 2,000 per worker employed. If an employer contravenes any provision resulting in an accident causing serious bodily injury or death of a worker, he shall, on conviction, be punishable with imprisonment up to six months or with fine not less than Rs. 25,000 and up to Rs. 50,000, or with both.
Conclusion
The Act establishes a structured compliance framework for regulating working conditions in shops and establishments across Gujarat. Employers must adhere to the provisions relating to registration, working hours, leave entitlements, safety, health and welfare to avoid penalties. Overall, the legislation balances business requirements with employee welfare, ensuring a fair and safe workplace environment.
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