The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has cracked the whip on firms failing to ensure remittance of the provident fund, pension and insurance amounts on behalf of their regular contract workers and those employed through contractors. Having found laxity by the contractors, especially those in the construction sector and in textile and leather clusters in depositing the amounts after claiming huge EPF sums from the principal employers, the EPFO has fixed the responsibility of remittance with the latter.
“The issue of coverage of contract workers has been flagged as area of topmost concern,” Central Provident Fund Commissioner V P Joy wrote to all organised sector units.
“In this connection, I invite your personal attention towards deposit of provident fund by contractors of major principal employers, it is often observed that the contractors claim huge amounts towards EPF of contract workers from the principal employer but either do not deposit it at all or deposit it partly, thus depriving these workers of PF, pension and insurance benefits,” Joy wrote.
