Thu Sep 04 01:23:22 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a summary of the provided information followed by a news article based on that information:
**Summary:**
The Maharashtra state cabinet has approved amendments to labor laws, increasing the maximum daily working hours for private-sector employees. This change affects both the Factories Act and the Shops and Establishments Act. The move aims to attract investment, create jobs, streamline business processes, and protect worker’s rights. Industries are allowed to extend daily working hours from nine to twelve hours with overtime compensation and increased overtime limits.
**News Article:**
**Maharashtra Approves Longer Workdays in Bid to Boost Investment and Jobs**
**Mumbai, September 4, 2025** – The Maharashtra cabinet has given the green light to amendments in key labor laws that will allow private-sector companies to increase daily working hours. The decision, announced on Wednesday, September 4, 2025, is aimed at attracting new investments, boosting employment, and safeguarding the rights of workers in the state.
The changes impact the Factories Act, 1948, and the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017. Industries will now be permitted to extend daily work hours from the current nine to a maximum of twelve, provided they adhere to overtime compensation regulations.
“These amendments are crucial to creating a business-friendly environment while ensuring the fair treatment of our workforce,” stated an official release from the Chief Minister’s office. The cabinet expects the reforms to align Maharashtra with states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh, which have already adopted similar measures.
Under the revised rules, rest breaks will now be mandated after six hours of work, compared to the previous five. Legal overtime limits will rise from 115 to 144 hours per quarter, and weekly hours are extended from 10.5 hours to 12 hours, requiring workers’ written consent. Similarly, the Shops and Establishments Act will see an increase in daily working hours from nine to ten, with revised overtime and emergency duty limits.
A key change for smaller businesses is the simplification of registration for establishments with fewer than 20 employees, who will now need only submit a notification.
The government believes these changes will lead to greater ease of doing business, attract investment, promote employment generation, and protect wages, with double pay mandated for overtime work. While the Labour Department has been pushing for these amendments, aiming to address the long-standing concerns of both employers and employees, concerns about workers’ well-being may arise.
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