COMPANIES CHANGE LEAVE POLICY FOR EMPLOYEES AMID WORK FROM HOME PLAN- REPORT

As most of the professionals are working from home due to the rise in COVID-19 cases and deaths, a large number of companies are currently modifying their leave policy by encouraging employees to take days off or capping leave encashment.

As per LiveMint report, with the new normal- professionals are continuously working from home and taking few leaves, for fear or job loss or due to travel restrictions. Due to such cases, days are piling up and making corporates rethink their leave policies. 

As leaves pile up, HR tech solution provider PeopleStrong found that less than 40 percent employees have applied for leaves during April-June, it was a significant drop in the company's standard. 

Looking into company standards, provision of fixed leave quantum is mandated as per state government requirements which is under the Shops and Establishment Act, 1961; while leave encashment is not, LiveMint further reported. 

“While most cannot scrap the policy overnight, many are reviewing the number of leaves that would be eligible for encashment down to 15-20 percent. This promotes a healthy working practice and helps address the burnout issue as well," Pankaj Bansal, the co-founder and CEO of PeopleStrong told the publication. 

Meanwhile, Navneet Rattan, director - performance & rewards, Aon India Consulting, commented on the same stating that "organisations were either reducing current leave balance, not allowing for leave encashment, or putting a cap on it in 2020."

Even, Anandorup Ghose, partner, Deloitte India, said actions by corporates would be guided from the perspective of reducing leave liabilities and improving cash flows. With this the companies can move annual leave encashment to retrenchment or resignation time instead, the report added. 

Taking this into consideration, few tech sectors on the other hand are encouraging employees to take leaves and not pile them up till the end of 2020.