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SPEs demand framing of statutory working rules in pharma industry
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Gireesh Babu, New Delhi
March 16 , 2022
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The sales promotion employees (SPEs) in the pharmaceutical industry have decided to intensify its country-wide movement to put pressure on the government to frame statutory working rules alleging “unbearable exploitation and victimisation” in the absence of such rules.
The 26th conference of the sales employees’ organisation in the pharma sector, Federation of Medical Representatives Association of India (FMRAI), held from March 10 to 12 in Kota, Rajasthan, also passed resolutions including demanding the Central government to allocate five per cent of the GDP to healthcare, reduce prices of medicines and medical devices by imposing a cap on all drug prices based on production cost price, reducing GST on medicines and medical devices and stopping of online sales of medicines, among others.
The Association also demanded the government to make Uniform Code of Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices as statutory provision with imprisonment as punishment for the erring companies, a matter on which it has recently approached the Supreme Court of India.
“26th Conference of FMRAI held during 10 – 12 March, 2022 at Kota, Rajasthan hereby demands to the Central Government for framing and notification of Statutory Working Rules for the Sales Promotion Employees working across the country,” said the Association.
“This has been our demand for the past several years and we are going to intensify our struggles to achieve this,” said Ramesh Sundar, president of FMRAI.
The Association said that the Industrial Tripartite Committee meeting for Sales promotion employees held on August 8, 2017 concluded to frame statutory working rules for Sales Promotion employees in presence of the Labour Minister. Subsequently, the government had notified draft working rules for suggestions and amendments. The draft document framed by the government was pro-corporate undermining the rights and existing privileges of the sales promotion employees and FMRAI submitted appropriate amendments on the draft document.
However, no development has taken place since then despite several persuasions by the Association and in September, last year, a delegation met the Union minister of labour & employment in pursuance of framing Statutory Working Rules which yielded no outcome as yet.
“There is unbearable exploitation and victimization of the sales promotion employees by the employers by imposing derogatory irrational working norms for the SPEs. The entire responsibility of sales is shifted on the shoulders of the sales promotion employees ignoring the nature of job of the SPEs as specified in law. Stoppage of Wages and Expense Reimbursement without complying with the law and the employers are intruding into the privacy of the sales promotion employees and the customers through surveillance and tracking by electronic devices leading to curbing of civil liberty,” it said. Sales promotion employees are deprived of overtime benefit in absence of declaration and clocking of working hours; it added.
Only the notification of the rules can make the job lawfully defined in terms of job specification, job responsibility, working hours, grievance settlement procedure etc.
The conference also demanded of the Central government to allocate 5% of GDP to healthcare; revive the public sector drug units including vaccine producing units; ensure active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) production to avoid reliance on foreign countries; reduce prices of medicines and medical devices by imposing a cap on all drug prices based on production cost price and reducing GST on medicines and medical devices; to make “Uniform Code of Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices” statutory provision with imprisonment as punishment for the erring companies; and ensure the availability of all essential drugs through compulsory licensing. It also demanded the government to stop the alleged attempt to dilute Indian Patent Law and stop online sales of medicines.
The inflation and increase in prices of essential commodities is impacting the lives of the SPEs and the organisation along with other fraternal organisations will fight against the policy driven price hike of the Central government, it added. It will participate in the two-day All India General Strike on March 28 and 29, 2022 against the retrograde neo-liberal policy regime since its official advent in 1991, said the Organisation.
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