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Unit 4: Factories Act, 1948

4.4 Health, Safety and Welfare Measures of Employees Notes

The Factories Act, 1948 provides the following provisions for maintaining health, security and
safety of employees:

4.4.1 For Health

1. Cleanliness

Section 11 of the Factories Act, 1948 provides for general cleanliness of the factory. It lays down
that dust, fumes and refuse should be removed daily; floors, stair-cases and passages should be
cleaned regularly by sweeping and other effective means while washing of interior walls and
roofs should take place at least once in 14 months and where these are painted with washable
water paint, be repainted after every three years and -where oil paint is used at least once in
five years. Further, all doors and window frames and other wooden or metallic framework and
shutters should be kept painted or varnished and the painting or varnishing shall be carried out
at least once in five years.

2. Disposal of Wastes and Effluents

Section 12 of the Factories Act makes it obligatory on the owner of every factory to make effective
arrangements for the treatment of wastes and effluents due to the manufacturing process carried
on therein, so as to render them innocuous and for their disposal.

3. Ventilation and Temperature

The occupier is required to make effective and suitable provisions for securing and maintaining
in every workroom adequate ventilation for the circulation of fresh air and to maintain such
temperature as will secure to workers reasonable conditions of comfort and prevent injury to
health.

4. Dust and Fume

Section 14 (1) deals with the measures, which should be adopted to keep the workrooms free
from dust and fume. Every factory in which by reason of the manufacturing process carried on,
there is given off any dust or fume or other impurity of such a nature and to such an extent as
is likely to be injurious or offensive to the workers employed therein, or any dust in substantial
quantities, effective measures shall be taken to prevent its inhalation and accumulation in any
work-room. If any exhaust appliance is necessary for the above purposes, it shall be applied as
near as possible to the point of origin of the dust, fume or other impurity and such point shall be
enclosed as far as possible.

5. Artificial Humidification

Section 15 (1) lays down that in respect off all factories in which the humidity of the air is
artificially increased the State Government may make rules-
l z prescribing standard of humidification;

l z regulating the methods used for artificially increasing the humidity of the air;
l z directing prescribed tests for determining the humidity of the air to be correctly carried out
and recorded;

LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY 53