Employment guarantee act, 2005

Employment guarantee act, 2005

The Government, on the advice of the National Advisory Council, has passed the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. The main features of the Act are :

1. Every household in rural India will have a right to at least 100 days of guaranteed employment every year for at least one adult member. The employment will be in the form of casual manual labour at the statutory minimum wage, and the wages shall be paid within 7 days of the week during which work was done.

2. Work should be provided within 15 days of demanding it, and the work should be located within 5 kilometre distance.

3. If work is not provided to anybody within the given time, he/she will be paid a daily unemployment allowance, which will be at least one- third of the minimum wages.

4. Workers employed on public works will be entitled to medical treatment and hospitalization in case of injury at work, along with a daily allowance of not less than half of the statutory minimum wage. In case of death or disability of a worker, an ex-gratia payment shall be made to his legal heirs as per provisions of the Workmen Compensation Act.

5. 5% of wages may be deducted as contribution to welfare schemes like health insurance, accident insurance, survivor benefits, maternity benefits and social security schemes.

6. For non-compliance with rules, strict penalties have been laid down.

7. For transparency and accountability, all accounts and records of the programme will be made available for public scrutiny.

8. The District Collector / Chief Executive Officer will be responsible for the programme at the district level.

9. The Gram Sabha will monitor the work of the Gram Panchayat by way of social audit.