The Act makes elaborate provisions for maintenance of health of the workers, their safety and welfare. For good health of the workers. The Act has made provisions regarding cleanliness, effective disposal of wastes, ventilation, temperature, removal of dust and fume and checking overcrowding, etc. For safety of the workers, the Act imposes obligation on occupiers and managers to provide for the secure fencing of dangerous machinery. It regulates employment of young persons on dangerous machines, and prohibits lifting of excessive weights. Provisions have also been made for the protection of eyes and precautions against fire and dangerous fumes and power cutting devices. For welfare of the workers, the Act has made provisions for adequate washing facilities separately for male and female workers, facilities for storing and drying clothes and facilities for sitting. Besides, provisions for first-aid appliances, canteens, shelters, rest rooms, lunch rooms and creches for the children of women workers have also been made. These provisions regarding health at work place are summarized below:
Provisions for Maintenance of Health:
Provisions regarding health have been discussed in Chapter III under Secs. 11 to 20 of the Act which are as follows:
Cleanliness:
Section 11 of the Factories act deals with the cleanliness at the work place. (1) Every factory shall be kept clean and free from effluvia arising from any drain, privy, or other nuisance, and in particular:
(a) Accumulation of dirt and refuse shall be removed daily by sweeping or by any other effective method from the floors and benches of work rooms and from staircases and passages, and disposed of in a suitable manner;
(b) The floor of every work-room shall be cleaned at least once in every week by washing, using disinfectant, where necessary, or by some other effective method;
(c) Where a floor is liable to become wet in the course of any manufacturing process to such extent as is capable of being drained, effective means of drainage shall be provided and maintained.
(d) All inside walls and partitions, all ceilings or tops of rooms and all walls, sides and tops of passages and staircases shall be repainted or revarnished at least once in every period of five years:
(i) where they are 1[painted otherwise than with washable water-paint] or varnished, be repainted or revarnished at least once in every period of five years;
(ia) where they are painted with washable water-paint, be repainted with at least one coat of such paint at least once in every period of three years and washed at least once in every period of six months;
(ii) In case they are painted or varnished or where they have smooth impervious surfaces, be cleaned at least once in every period of fourteen months by such method as may be prescribed.
(iii) in any other case, be kept whitewashed, or colour washed, and the whitewashing or colour washing shall be carried out at least once in every period of fourteen months.
(dd) All doors and window frames and other wooden or metallic framework and shutters shall be kept painted or varnished and the painting or varnishing shall be carried out at least once in every period of five years.
(e) The dates on which the processes required by clause (4) are carried out shall be entered in the prescribed register.
(2) If, in view of the nature of the operations carried on in a factory or class or description of factories or any part of a factory or class or description of factories, it is not possible for the occupier to comply with all or any of the provisions of subsection (1), the State Government may by order exempt such factory or class or description of factories or part from any of the provisions of that sub-section and specify alternative methods for keeping the factory in a clean staTe
Disposal of Wastes and Effluents:
Section 12 of the Factories act deals with the disposal of waste and effluents.
(1) Effective arrangements shall be made in every factory for the treatment of wastes and effluents due to the manufacturing process carried on therein, so to render them innocuous, and for their disposal.
(2) The State Government may make rules prescribing the arrangements to be made under sub-section (1) or requiring that the arrangements made in accordance with sub-section (1) shall be approved by such authority as may be prescribed.
Ventilation and Temperature:
Section 13 of the Factories act deals with the ventilation and temperature at the work place.
(1) Effective and suitable provision shall be made in every factory for securing and maintaining in every work room:
(a) adequate ventilation by the circulation of fresh air; and
(b) such a temperature as will secure to workers therein reasonable conditions of comfort and prevent injury to health.
and in particular,
(i) walls and roofs shall be of such material and so designed that such temperature shall not be exceeded bill kept as tow as practicable;
(ii) where the nature of the work carried on in the factory involves, or is likely to involve the production of excessively high temperatures, such adequate measures as are practicable shall be taken to protect the workers therefrom, by separating the process which produces such temperatures from the workroom, by insulating the hot parts or by other effective means.
(2) The State Government may prescribe a standard of adequate ventilation and reasonable temperature for any factory or class or description of factories or parts thereof and direct that proper measuring instruments, at such places and in such position as may be specified, shall be provided and such records, as may be prescribed, shall be maintained.
(3) If it appears to the Chief Inspector that excessively high temperatures in any factory can be reduced by the adoption of suitable measures, he may, without prejudice to the rules made under sub-section (2), serve on the occupier, an order in writing specifying the measures which, in his opinion, should be adopted, and requiring them to be carried out before a specified date.
Dust and Fume:
Section 14 of the Factories act deals with the dust and fumes at the work place.
(1) Where the manufacturing process gives 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, and if any exhaust appliance is necessary for this purpose, 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 so far as possible.
(2) In any factory no stationary internal combustion engine shall be operated unless the exhaust is conducted into the open air, and no other internal combustion engine shall be operated in any room unless effective measures have been taken to prevent such accumulation of fumes therefrom as are likely to be injurious to workers employed in the room.
Artificial Humidification:
Section 15 of the Factories act deals with the artificial humidification at the work place.
(1) In respect of all factories in which the humidity of the air is artificially increased, the State Government may make rules:
(a) prescribing standards of humidification;
(b) regulating the methods used for artificially increasing the humidity of the air,
(c) directing prescribed tests for determining the humidity of the air to be correctly carried out and recorded;
(d) prescribing methods to be adopted for securing adequate ventilation and cooling of the air in the work room.
(2) In any factory in which the humidity of the air is artificially increased, the water used for the purpose shall be taken from a public supply, or other source of drinking water, or shall be effectively purified before it is so used.
(3) If it appears to an Inspector that the water used in a factory for increasing humidity which is required to be effectively purified under sub-section (2) is not effectively purified he may serve on the manager of the factory an order in writing, specifying the measures which in his opinion should be adopted, and requiring them to be carried out before specified date.
Overcrowding:
Section 16 of the Factories act deals with overcrowding at the work place.
(1) No room in any factory shall be overcrowded to an extent injurious to the health of the workers employed therein.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of sub-section (1) there shall be in every workroom of a factory in existence on the date of the commencement of this Act at least 9.9 cubic metres and of a factory built after the commencement of this Act at least 14.2 cubic metres of space for every worker employed therein, and for the purposes of this sub-section no account shall be taken of any space which is more than 4.2 metres above the level of the floor of the room.
(3) If the Chief Inspector by order in writing so requires, there shall be posted in each workroom of a factory a notice specifying the maximum number of workers who may, in compliance with the provisions of this section, be employed in the room.
(4) The Chief Inspector may by order in writing exempt, subject to such conditions, if any, as he may think fit to impose, any workroom from the provisions of this section, if he is satisfied that compliance therewith in respect of the room is unnecessary in the interest of the health of the workers employed therein.
Lighting:
Section 17 of the Factories act deals with the lighting at the work place.
(1) In every part of a factory where workers are working of passing there shall be provided and maintained sufficient and suitable lighting, natural or artificial, or both.
(2) In every factory all glazed windows and skylights used for the lighting of the workrooms shall be kept clean on both the inner and outer surfaces and, so far as compliance with the provisions of any rules made under sub-section (3) of section 13 will allow, free from obstruction.
(3) In every factory effective provision shall, so far as is practicable, be made for the prevention of–
(a) glare, either directly from a source of light or by reflection from a smooth or polished surface:
(b) the formation of shadows to such an extent as to cause eye-strain or the risk of accident to any worker.
(4) The State Government may prescribe standards of sufficient and suitable lighting for factories or for any class or description of factories or for any manufacturing process.
Drinking Water:
Section 18 of the Factories act deals with the availability of drinking water at the work place.
(1) In every factory effective arrangements shall be made to provide and maintain at suitable points conveniently situated for all workers employed therein a sufficient supply of wholesome drinking water.
(2) All such points shall be legibly marked “drinking water” in a language understood by a majority of the workers employed in the factory, and no such point shall be situated within 1[six metres of any washing place, urinal, latrine, spittoon, open drain carrying sullage or effluent or any other source of contamination] unless a shorter distance is approved in writing by the Chief Inspector.
(3) In every factory wherein more than two hundred and fifty workers are ordinarily employed, provision shall be made for cool drinking water during hot weather by effective means and for distribution thereof. (4) In respect of all factories or any class or description of factories the State Government may make rules for securing compliance with the provisions of sub-sections (1), (2) and (3) and for the examination by prescribed authorities of the supply and distribution of drinking water in factories.
Latrines and Urinals:
Section 19 of the Factories act deals with the provision of latrines and urinals at the work place.
(1) In every factory–
(a) sufficient latrine and urinal accommodation of prescribed types shall be provided conveniently situated and accessible to workers at all times while they are at factory;
(b) separate enclosed accommodation shall be provided for male and female workers;
(c) such accommodation shall be adequately lighted and ventilated, and no latrine or urinal shall, unless specially exempted in writing by the Chief Inspector, communicate with any work room except through an intervening open space or ventilated passage;
(d) all such accommodation shall be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition at all times;
(e) sweepers shall be employed whose primary duty it would be to keep clean latrines, urinals and washing places.
(2) In every factory wherein more than two hundred and fifty workers are ordinarily employed–
(a) all latrine and urinal accommodation shall be of prescribed sanitary types;
(b) the floors and internal walls, up to a height of 1[ninety centimetres], of the latrines and urinals and the sanitary blocks shall be laid in glazed tiles or otherwise finished to provide a smooth polished impervious surface;
(c) without prejudice to the provisions of clauses (d) and (e) of sub-section (1), the floors, portions of the walls and blocks so laid or finished and the sanitary pans of latrines and urinals shall be thoroughly washed and cleaned at least once in every seven days with suitable detergents or disinfectants or with both.
(3) The State Government may prescribe the number of latrines and urinals to be provided in any factory in proportion to the numbers of male and female workers ordinarily employed therein, and provide for such further mailers in respect of sanitation in factories, including the obligation of workers in this regard, as it considers necessary in the interest of the health of the workers employed therein.
Spittoons:
Section 20 of the Factories act deals with the provision of spittoons at the work place.
(1) In every factory there shall be provided a sufficient number of spittoons in convenient places and they shall be maintained in a clean and hygienic condition.
(2) The State Government may make rules prescribing the type and the number of spittoons to be provided and their location in any factory and provide for such further matters relating to their maintenance in a clean and hygienic condition.
(3) No person shall spit within the premises of a factory except in the spittoons provided for the purpose and a notice containing this provision and the penalty for its violation shall be prominently displayed at suitable places in the premises.
(4) Whoever spits in contravention of sub-section (3) shall be punishable with fine not exceeding five rupees.