Temporary employees who were appointed before the election but failed to report to work during and after the election would be placed under the leave without pay category.
In some good news for temporary employees of Sikkim, Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang has issued orders for the swift release of their salaries ahead of the Dashain Festival. However, temporary employees who were appointed before the election but failed to report to work during and after the election would be placed under the leave without pay category and those who joined but did not report to work regularly would be terminated immediately.
These decisions were taken at the coordination meeting held today where heads of all state government departments were present to discuss salary disbursement and other pressing issues related to employee welfare.
During the meeting, the Chief Minister was briefed on the current status of salary disbursements. Departments provided updates on the total number of temporary employees and detailed the progress of salary releases. These updates revealed that most salaries for August and September had been cleared, yet some issues, such as insufficient funds, absenteeism, and documentation discrepancies remain.
CM Tamang said that these issues need to be addressing immediately so that all employees who had not received their pay due to incomplete records or procedural delays get it at the earliest. He stressed that all pending salary bills must be cleared before the Dashain festival to ensure that employees do not face financial problems during the festive season.
Some of the other key decisions taken at the meeting are:
1/ For those employees who received appointment orders before the election but only joined post-election, their salaries would be processed from the actual date of joining.
2/ Temporary employees who applied for leave right after joining would be granted leave without pay, and sabbatical leave would only be allowed after six months of continuous service.
3/ Arrears might be released after proper verification of attendance for employees who joined before the elections. CM urged the Pay and Accounts department under the Finance Department to expedite the clearance of all pending salary bills, placing a high priority on ensuring that employees are paid before the holiday.
In addition to the focus on salary disbursements, the Chief Minister provided clarification on Compassionate Appointments and stressed that candidates under this scheme are not required to seek recommendations from their respective MLAs, and departments were urged to communicate this to all concerned.
The meeting also featured a significant announcement regarding a proposal to revise the current Maternity Leave provisions. The Chief Minister explained that this revision would be rolled out in two phases – the first phase would grant six months of maternity leave to female employees, and the second phase would introduce a Child Care Leave policy. Under this new policy, parents employed by the state government would be able to take an additional six months of leave after the mother has utilized her maternity leave.
Further clarifications were provided by Rinzing Chewang Bhutia, Secretary of Planning & Development and the Department of Personnel (DOP), regarding various departmental issues, emphasizing that under the Sabbatical Leave Scheme, temporary employees working on Work-charged, Muster Roll, Adhoc, and other programs drawing pay from the Consolidated Fund of the State would only be eligible for leave after six months of continuous service. Similarly, regular government employees would need to complete at least five years of service to be eligible for sabbatical leave.
Bhutia also reminded the departments that all applications for sabbatical leave, especially from employees citing studies or other personal reasons, should be processed according to established rules. He noted that Maternity leave applications could continue to be processed at the departmental level as per existing norms.
Attendance Verification
Attendance verification for newly appointed employees was another important point of discussion. The Chief Minister stressed the importance of ensuring that attendance is accurately verified from the date of joining to avoid any discrepancies during salary disbursements. He urged all departments to act with vigilance and ensure that proper records are maintained.
Further, the Chief Minister reiterated his directive to the Pay and Accounts division, calling for the urgent clearance of all pending salary bills. He emphasized that ensuring the timely release of salaries for temporary employees before Dashain was a top priority for the government.
