Taking a critical view of XLRI Jamshedpur’s report on re-inventing the Employees Provident Fund Organisation, a sub-committee appointed by the EPFO’s Central Board of Trustees (CBT) has said implementation of its recommendations in toto would lead to abolishment of group ‘C’ and ‘D’ posts in the organisation.

Clearly, such a move at this stage will not be politically expedient, more so when Group C and D employees number almost 17,000 and form a bulk of the EPFO. The Sub-Committee has, on the contrary, proposed ramping up the staff strength given the buoyant growth rate. The report will be taken up for discussion by the CBT at a special meeting on Thursday.

As per 2007 estimates, of the EPFO’s total manpower of 19,510, the present strength of Group C and D posts is 14,747 and 2,173, respectively. However, the sanctioned strength of employees for Group C and D posts is 17,998 and 2,420 respectively. Group C posts perform supervisory as well as operative tasks and render clerical assistances and Group D posts are meant for carrying out routine duties.

“Abolishing such a large number of posts in one go, when the Project Re-inventing EPF India is yet to take off, would affect service delivery,” read the observation of the sub-committee. Noting that such a move may not garner support from stakeholders, it said, “Any restructuring process without addressing the basic requirements of improving service delivery can not have the stakeholders’ acceptance.” The interim report said XLRI failed to explain the rationale in recommending work norms for clerical staff and regional offices. Panning the report as lacking an all-encompassing analysis, it says the report excluded external stakeholders, employees and employers from consultations.

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