Kolkata, July 7
The West Bengal government has made the attendance of all state government employees mandatory on July 9, the day when all ten central trade unions will be observing a nationwide strike against different policies of the Union government.
The state Finance Department on Monday issued a memorandum claiming that all state government offices will remain open on that day, and all employees will have to report for duty on that day.
“It has been decided that no Casual Leave or any other leave for absence either in the 1st half or in the 2nd half or for the whole day shall be granted to any employee on the above-mentioned day,†the notification read.
However, there will be exceptions for cases like hospitalisation of the employee concerned, bereavement in the family, severe illness and absence continuing before July 8, and employees who had been on child care leave, maternity leave, medical leave, and earned leave-sanctioned before July 8.
“All heads of offices/controlling authorities concerned will issue a show-cause notice to the employee(s) concerned, who will remain absent on 9th July 2025, asking him/her to explain why action would not be taken against him/her for such unauthorized absence. On receipt of a satisfactory reply, leave due and admissible may be granted on production of documentary evidence on the grounds mentioned above,†the notification read.
The state government has also made it clear that if absence was not covered by any of the above mentioned reasons and the leave has not been approved, the same will be treated as 'dies-non' and no salary would be admissible for the above-mentioned day.
“Those who will not respond to the show-cause notice will be liable to disciplinary action. All courses of action in terms of this order should be completed by 31st July 2025, and a compliance report on action taken should be sent to this department,†the notification read.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Good decision by WB govt! Essential services must continue uninterrupted. Strikes only cause inconvenience to common people. Employees are paid to work, not to disrupt public services. ðŸ‘
The timing is suspicious - just before elections. Both state and central governments are playing politics with employees' lives. When will they think about actual governance instead of these power games?
As someone working in private sector, I don't understand why govt employees get so many leave options! In our companies, we have strict attendance policies. This seems like a reasonable measure to ensure work continuity.
The "dies-non" provision is too harsh. Many employees might have genuine reasons not mentioned in exceptions. Government should show some compassion instead of threatening salary cuts. This will only create resentment.
Interesting how they mention "documentary evidence" for exceptions. In reality, most govt offices don't follow proper procedures for leave applications. This selective strictness shows double standards! 😒
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