The Government of India through the Ministry of Women and Child Development, issued a Department Circular No. 19-8 2014-WW, dated 27th October, 2014 (“Department Circular”) regarding implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. This Department Circular clarifies that ‘the Act casts an obligation upon all the organizations (whether private or public sector) having more than 10 workers to constitute Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) for receiving complaints of sexual harassment.’ It also states that the ICC and Local Complaints Committee (LCC) shall prepare an annual report and submit the same to the employer or District Officer who in turn will forward a brief report on the total annual reports so received to the State Government authorized to monitor the implementation of the Act and maintain data on the number of cases filed and disposed off.

It further goes on to say that the Department of Women and Child Development in every State/Union Territory is required to collate this information from various government departments, public sector undertakings and private institutions for the first time for one and a half years since the Act came into force and at every six months in the future and forward the same to the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Please click here to view the Department Circular dated 27th October, 2014.

– Adv. Shivangi Prasad – Corporate Lawyer, External Member & Trainer, Head – Legal & Compliance, Partner Child Safety at Work