The Ministry of Labour & Employment(MOLE) is among the top 20 ministries receiving the highest number of grievances. The MOLE attaches high importance to the redressal of grievances and has set up a Nodal Public Grievance (PG) Cell in the ministry which receives, forwards and does coordination work on public grievances at the level of the ministry.
The public grievances are received in the ministry mainly in two modes –online through the CPGRAMS portal (http://pgportal.gov.in) and also in offline or physically through various sources. The grievances are reviewed in the ministry at the highest level of secretary (L&E) on regular basis.
Any person or party having any grievance on any matter related to the ministry or to any organisation of this ministry can file his / her grievance either online through the CPGRAMS portal withrelevant details or can send or submit the grievance physically to the ministry through the public grievance officer.
Grievance redressal machinery in MOLE
The PG Cell is supervised by a section officer and works under one under secretary at the branch level who functions under the direct supervision of a director-level officer designated as the nodal public grievance officer at the ministry level.
Similarly, the various organisations of the ministry like the EPFO, the ESIC, the Chief Labour Commissioner (Central)Organisation etc. have their own nodal grievance redressal officer at the headquarters level who can be accessed by aggrieved persons at the addresses and telephone numbers available on the website of the respective organisation.
Process for filing complaints
These websites of the organisations of MOLE can also be accessed through the menus 'About us' and 'Organisations of MOLE' at https://labour.gov.in/organizations-mole
Action on complaints
MOLE follows the guidelines of the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) for the redressal of public grievances. All grievances after acknowledgement are forwarded to the organization(s) concerned, who are dealing with the substantive function(s) linked with the grievance for redressal under intimation to the complainant.
The CPGRAMS grievances are regularly reviewed by the ministry at the highest level of the secretary.
Depending upon the seriousness of the grievance, the PG Cell of the ministry also reminds / follows up on them regularly with the organization(s) concerned till their final disposal.
The public grievance redressal mechanism in the ministry functions on a decentralised basis. The attached and subordinate offices and the autonomous bodies dealing with substantive functions have their respective grievance redressal machinery.
The PG Cell,inorder to ensure that grievances are handled in a fair, objective and just manner, particularly follows those grievances where the complainant had failed to get redressal at the hands of internal machinery and subordinate authorities.
DARPG has introduced a mechanism inthe CPGRAMS whereby an aggrieved person can make a representation if he / she is not satisfied with the reply of the grievance officer.
The writer is a Vile Parle based social activist
