Absence procedure, Overtime Allowance

Mechanical Code

226. Register of Absentees—(1) Within an hour of commencement of work for each period, absentees will be listed up by the Time Clerk in a 'Register of Absentees' (W-226A) which should be put up to the Shop Supdt. for his check and signatures. The shop Supdt. will verify the list by calling independently list of absentees from the chargemen of different sections and will attest the register under his dated signatures in token of having certified the list of absentees. All additions, deletions and corrections in the "Absentee Register" should be attested by the Shop Supdt./Dy. Shop Supdt. incharge.

(2) The Absentee Register should also show for each work period in figures as well as words, the total number of men who have been listed up therein. The manner in which the absence of workers is regulated from time to time as also reference to sanction of leave etc. are recorded in the Absentee Register by the Time Clerk. The nature of absence is simultaneously recorded in the corresponding G.A. Cards. If the workman is hurt on duty or leave the works on a gatepass for any reason whatever, suitable remarks to this effect indicating the exact time of leaving the shop should be recorded in the 'Absentee Register'.

Form W-226- A

227. A railway doctor's certificate should be produced in all cases of absence on account of sickness, but in cases of men living at inconvenient distances from a railway doctor, a certificate from a recognised medical practitioner may be accepted provided that in the case of subordinate staff, it is countersigned by a railway doctor.

228. A workman absenting himself without leave or medical certificate will be liable to disciplinary action.

229. The following procedure should be followed in dealing with a man absenting himself.

In case of absence of less than three days' duration, the shop Superintendent will decide the action to be taken. For absence between 3 and 6 days the Assistant Officer and for absence over 6 days the senior scale officer concerned will decide the action to be taken against the defaulter. The Shop Superintendent will be responsible to see that each case of unauthorized absence receives the attention at the appropriate level as stipulated above. The normal disciplinary procedure should be gone through before imposing a penalty.

242. Overtime Allowance.—(1) The following is the more important provision of Section 59 of Factories Act. 1948 in regard to grant of overtime allowance: —

'Where a worker works in a factory for more than nine hours in a day or for more than forty-eight hours in any week, he shall in respect of overtime work be paid wages at the rate twice his ordinary rats of wages. Overtime under Section 59(1) of the Factories Act, 1948 should be calculated on a daily basis or weekly basis, whichever is more favourable to the employee.

(2) Supervisory staff employed in railway workshops as are specifically made eligible for payment of overtime under Section 64 of the Factories Act, 1948, may be paid overtime for extra hours worked in excess of the statutory hours of work prescribed under the Act as per the provisions made in sub-para (I) above.

Note: Ordinary rate of wages means the basic wages plus such allowances including dearness allowance, compensatory (city) allowance and house rent allowance as also including the cash equivalent of the benefit accruing through the concessional sale to workers of food grains and other articles, as the worker is for the time being entitled to but does not include a bonus.

(3) The total number of hours of work for overtime work of a worker shall not exceed the limit laid down for any quarter ending March, June, September and December in the Factories Act of 1948 or that, if any, laid down by the appropriate State Government.

243. Subject to the provisions of the preceding paragraph the following rules should be observed in regard to the grant of overtime allowance to the extent these rules are not inconsistent with any existing rules or orders issued by the Railway Board for any particular railway: —

(1) Workmen may be paid overtime for the actual number of hours worked beyond shop hours in the interest of service at the rate of 1/208th of the monthly pay including Dearness Allowance and Additional Dearness Allowance for every hour so worked. For the purpose of calculating overtime, fractions of an hour in the total of the overtime worked in a wage-period should be ignored if they are less than 30 minutes and those of 30 minutes or more should be counted as an hour.

(2) Workmen sent out from shops temporarily to work at their headquarters station should not be allowed overtime allowance unless they work beyond shop hours.

(3) (i) Workmen sent out from shops with engines and vehicles on trial trips as well as staff sent out from shops to work at outstations temporarily, should be paid overtime for the actual number of hours worked beyond shop hours. This should be taken as illustrative and not exhaustive. Any staff sent out from the workshop on duty should be allowed overtime, if otherwise entitled to, at single rate. No distinction should be made between staff sent on duty with engines or vehicles on trial Trips and others sent on duty as, for instance, for attending to cash safes etc. Irrespective of whether such staff are actually engaged in work, the total period during which they remain on duty beyond shop hours should be counted as duty for allowing overtime at single rate.

(ii) Workshop staff who are required to proceed to outstations on duty either with materials which are required to be supplied to the stations where required or to fetch them from outstations, should also be paid overtime in the same way as is admissible in the case of workshop staff sent out from shops with trial engines or vehicles provided that the time spent in journeys is not taken into account for computing the hours of work for payment of overtime.

(4) Since daily allowance and overtime allowance are given for different sets of conditions, both these types of payment should be made provided the conditions prescribed are satisfied in each case.

(5) A record of overtime worked must be kept.

249. Deductions for Absence.—Deductable absence should be shown in Muster-Roll-cum-Labour Pay Sheet (W-246) in days and hours. Deductions for absence should be calculated as under: —

(i) For absence for less than a day except a half day—Deductions from the monthly pay will be made at the rate of 1/2O8th of the monthly pay for every hour.

(ii) For absence for half a day or full day: A half a day will be the first or second period of work on any day on which the workshop remains open for both the periods. Deductions for half a day or full day will be at l/60th or l/62nd etc. l/30th or l/31st etc. of monthly pay, as the case may be.