August 28, 2025

Hold your breath, private sector workers of Maharashtra! The state government is cooking up a spicy plan that may change your daily work hours. Labour Minister Akash Fundkar revealed that there’s a proposal to stretch your working day from 9 hours to a solid 10 hours! This hot topic came up in a recent cabinet meeting in Mumbai and is now getting a close look before anyone makes a final call. The game-changer here involves tweaking the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Act of 2017. This law currently controls how many hours shops, hotels, and private businesses can ask you to work. But the government feels it’s time to sprinkle some international flavour and flexibility into these rules. One bold idea on the table is to swell the allowed overtime from 125 hours to 144 hours every three months. Can you imagine that extra work piling up? But wait, there’s a silver lining — the proposal promises mandatory breaks to ease employees' strain during long hours. Women workers might get a new chance to shine after dark too! The plan includes letting women work late hours once fresh labour codes are locked in. This move aims to widen job chances for women, which sounds promising. Another spicy twist is on the size of businesses covered under labour laws. Right now, only places with more than 10 employees follow these rules. The new thought is to extend protection and rules to firms with up to 20 workers — doubling the reach! However, Minister Fundkar stressed that these are early-stage talks. Many private workers already work longer than rules allow without proper pay, which is pushing the government to rethink. But remember, no decisions are set in stone yet. So, keep your eyes peeled as this labour drama unfolds!

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Tags: Maharashtra government, Working hours, Labour law, Private sector, Overtime, Employee rights,