The IT sector in India is looking for revisions in the taxation as well as the labor laws of the country as more than half of the workforce in the industry, which is worth $191 billion, could be starting the delivery of services remotely, which is a part of the different changes that have been wrought upon the economy due to the current pandemic.
The IT industry leaders had held a meeting with the government officials at the beginning of the month who had come to an estimation that nearly 50% of the nation’s IT workers, that would amount to 4.3 million, will be normally working from home soon and have been asked to elaborate on the legislative changes that are mostly needed to facilitate this major transition.
Nasscom, an industry body, has been given the task to prepare a detailed report and it shall be further sent to other relevant ministries like labor ministry and the department for telecom for action.
The government has also been requested by the industries to create several permanent existing concessions to be extended up to July which will also include the relaxing of all the telecom regulations that help back office firms to work from home and also move equipment out from certain designated economic zones to be able to facilitate remote working.
Infosys’ UB Pravin Rao, the chief operating officer, said that certain labor laws may not be able to cater to the work from home environment, which induces the company to start looking through a fresher lens.
Nasscom has recently been involved in the reviewing of different labor laws keeping in mind the WFH perspective and intends to send a report to the government in the forthcoming week. A number of officials are under the view that labor laws must be amended in a way that safeguards the employees while also offers flexibility to the employers.
Source Credit- https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/it-seeks-changes-in-laws-as-work-from-home-set-to-become-norm/articleshow/75684748.cms