Overview of the Concern
The current method of earned leave cash encashment is inflicting major financial losses on the employees of SAIL (Steel Authority of India Limited). The management has come under fire from the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), which has called for a review of the current calculation method.
Methods of Calculation Coming Under Review.
The formula for earned leave cash encashment right now counts a month as having 30 days. This process separates the monthly salary—composed of base pay and dearness allowance—by 30 to find the daily wage. According to CITU representatives, this practice needs to evolve.
Their suggestion is to divide the monthly salary by 26 instead of the working days for the purpose of calculating gratuity payments. This move would permit employees to obtain a more just amount in accordance with the real count of workdays.
Representation and Discussion
The CITU delegation headed by participants such as Vijay Kumar Jangrade and Ashok Khatarkar has met recently with the Senior General Manager, M. Prasad. They pointed out that modifying the calculation method for earned leave encashment is important for offering just compensation to employees using their accumulated leaves.
Effects of the Present System
Per the existing system, in order to receive one month’s salary via cash encashment, employees have to sell 30 days of their earned leave. Nevertheless, because they only require 26 days of earned leave to enjoy a complete month off—thanks to weekly holidays—this policy places an additional financial strain.
Consequently, those in S1 to S11 grades are losing anywhere from ₹6,000 to ₹20,000 per occasion of encashment because they need to accumulate additional earned leaves to cover the shortfall.
Call for Change
CITU General Secretary Jagannath Prasad Trivedi has vigorously backed this adjustment, pointing out that the system ought to represent the real work days instead of an unrelated figure. The organization feels that amending this policy would financially benefit employees and also contribute to increasing morale among their employees.