What are labour rules for workers abroad?

  • January 21, 2024
  • Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
  • Category: DPN Topics
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What are labour rules for workers abroad?

Subject: IR

Section: Msc

Context:

  • National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) is assisting the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana in hiring around 10,000 workers to go to Israel, mainly for construction work.
National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC)

  • It is a not-for-profit public limited company that was established in July 2008.
  • The Ministry of Finance established NSDC as a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
  • The Government of India, through the MSDE (Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship), holds 49% of the NSDC’s share capital, while the private sector holds the remaining 51%.
  • Currently, the NSDC is under the MSDE.

Goal

  • To improve the skills of people in India. It does this by encouraging private sector initiatives in skill development programs and providing funding.
  • To promote skill development by catalysing the creation of large, quality, and for-profit vocational institutions.

Employment in Israel

  • There are about 18,000 Indian citizens in Israel, primarily caregivers employed by Israeli elders to take care of them, diamond traders, IT professionals and students.
  • According to a 2017 report prepared by the ILO, international migration has grown significantly in the last two decades.
  • The number of migrants from Asia to the Arab states has more than tripled, from 5.7 million in 1990 to 19 million in 2015.

Prescribed rules

  • Registration on e-migrate portal
    • Workers going to conflict zones or places without sufficient labour protections are required to register with the Ministry of External Affairs’ ‘e-migrate’ portal.
    • The e-Migrate Project was launched in 2014.
    • The portal is a digital platform that aims to streamline the emigration process for Indian workers.
    • It allows workers to create profiles, register employment contracts, and obtain emigration clearance.
  • Emigration Check Required (ECR) scheme
    • ECR scheme is a passport category for Indian nationals who want to work abroad.
    • ECR passports are issued to people who have not passed the 10th grade or higher education pass certificate.
    • To work in ECR countries, ECR passport holders must obtain an Emigration Clearance (EC) from the Protector of Emigrants (POE).
    • POEs are responsible for granting emigration clearance to intending emigrants.
    • The POEs perform functions assigned to them under the Emigration Act, 1983.
    • Currently, passports issued under the ECR scheme cover workers travelling to 18 countries.
    • Israel is not on this list and hence the e-migrate system will not be used for those going to Israel despite continuing violence due to Israel’s bombing of Gaza.
  • Collection of service charges from workers
    • The Rules say that no recruiting agent shall collect from the worker service charges more than a maximum of ₹30,000.
    • These service charges shall include costs of domestic travel or lodging and boarding for conducting of interviews by the recruiting agent.

International practices

  • The international practices for protection of migrant workers are governed by two conventions of the International Labour Organisation:
    • the Migration for Employment Convention (Revised), 1949
    • and Migrant Workers (Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1975.
  • While India has not ratified both conventions, Israel had ratified the 1949 convention in 1953.
IR What are labour rules for workers abroad?