STANDING ORDERSCentral

Section 28 of The Industrial Relations Code, 2020

Application of this Chapter.

(1)The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to every industrial establishment wherein three hundred or more than three hundred workers, are employed, or were employed on any day of the preceding twelve months.
(2)Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), the provisions of this Chapter shall not apply to an industrial establishment in so far as the workers employed therein are persons to whom the Fundamental and Supplementary Rules, Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, Civil Services (Temporary Service) Rules, Revised Leave Rules, Civil Service Regulations, Civilians in Defence Service (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules or the Indian Railway Establishment Code or any other rules or regulations that may be notified in this behalf by the appropriate Government, apply.

Summary

The rules about "Standing Orders" (which are formal rules of conduct in a workplace) only apply to certain large businesses.
Specifically, these rules apply to industrial establishments that have three hundred or more workers.
This worker count is based on the average per day over the previous twelve months.
These rules do not apply to workers who are already covered by specific government service rules, such as the Civil Services Rules or the Indian Railway Establishment Code.
The government can notify other specific sets of rules that exempt workers from this chapter.

Practical examples

1A software company with 350 employees must follow the "Standing Orders" chapter because they have more than the 300-worker threshold.

2A small printing press with 150 employees does not have to create formal standing orders under this chapter because they fall below the 300-worker limit.

3An engineer working for the Indian Railways is not governed by this chapter's standing orders because she is already covered by the Indian Railway Establishment Code.

FAQ

1. What is the minimum number of workers needed for these rules to apply?

The establishment must have three hundred or more workers.

2. How do we calculate the 300-worker limit?

You look at how many workers were employed on any day during the last twelve months.

3. What exactly are "Standing Orders"?

As defined earlier in the Code (Section 2(zj)), they are workplace rules regarding matters like shift timings, attendance, and discipline found in the First Schedule.

Test yourself

1.Under Section 28 of The Industrial Relations Code, 2020, what is the threshold of workers for the Standing Orders chapter to apply?

2.According to Section 28 of The Industrial Relations Code, 2020, over what time period is the worker count measured?

3.Under Section 28 of The Industrial Relations Code, 2020, which of the following groups is exempt from this chapter?

4.If a company had 310 workers eight months ago but only has 250 today, does Section 28 of The Industrial Relations Code, 2020, still apply?

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