Central govt may soon ask private companies to notify vacancies

Central govt may soon ask private companies to notify vacancies

Hemali.Chhapia@timesofindia.com 21.01.2025

Mumbai : Vacancies in all departments and verticals of private companies may soon have to be mandatorily notified to govt, signalling a shift in employment regulation. The Centre plans to replace the Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959, with the new Social Securities Act, in order to formalise a mechanism for disseminating information on job vacancies and introduce steep penalties for non-compliance – govt wants to hike fines, which were once a negligible Rs 100, to as high as Rs 50,000. 

“We have employment exchanges, but they have become defunct. With the changes in the Act, we will revive and strengthen them to ensure companies inform the state about vacancies,” said Mangal Prabhat Lodha, state minister for skill education, employment, and entrepreneurship. Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Lodha said nominal penalties of Rs 100-500 have discouraged companies from reporting vacancies, a practice that will change under the revamped law. Currently, most companies post their vacancies on employment-oriented social media platforms like LinkedIn. It is not clear why the govt wants to duplicate this effort. To ease compliance, Maharashtra govt plans to develop a state-specific job portal for companies to list their openings. This initiative, according to the minister, forms part of a broader 100-day action plan. Sougato Roychoudhary, executive director, CII, said while there is already a provision to notify vacancies, “It (the new proposal) will help to understand (number of) jobs in every state. On the one hand, industry is looking for talent and one speaks of unemployment.

 This is a good initiative.” The Centre is also drafting a Private Placements Act to regulate placement agencies. States like Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, and Assam have already submitted inputs for this bill. Maharashtra too plans to make submissions for it. Under this act, all placement agencies will have to register in their respective state, which will empanel and monitor them. “These agencies often charge fees and promise jobs but sometimes end up duping candidates. By registering them, we can hold them accountable and track data on jobs secured through their platforms,” said an official. These agencies will also be required to participate in state-organized job fairs. Meanwhile, as part of a 100-day action plan in Maharashtra, job fairs will be organized in industrial belts, and memorandums of understanding will be signed with 1,000 industrial establishments.