Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah plans quota while outsourcing govt jobs
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said Saturday he wants to introduce reservation in outsourced employment to government posts.
Siddaramaiah was speaking at an event 'Prabuddha Karnataka Janamana Samavesha' here organised by Janamana Prathishtana and Samatha Adhyayana.
Reiterating his commitment to fill up vacancies, Siddaramaiah said recruitment to government jobs was part of the Congress' manifesto. "We are committed to filling up vacancies. Until then, we will go for outsourced employment and we are thinking of introducing reservation in this," he said.
Karnataka has 2.55 lakh government jobs vacant against a sanctioned strength of 7.72 lakh posts across 43 departments.
At present, there are 75,474 outsourced employees. The government usually ropes in third-party agencies to provide personnel for Group-C and Group-D posts such as drivers and data entry operators.
Reservation for outsourced jobs will be a significant shift in the government's stand on the matter. In February, the then chief minister Basavaraj Bommai told the Legislative Council in a written reply that contract-based recruitment is an "exceptional method" and they are not regular appointments. "This appointment can be made for a specific period only," the CM had said to a question on why there is no quota in contract-basis recruitment in the government.
Speaking to DH, Karnataka State Government Employees Association president N Shadakshari said Siddaramaiah's plan is welcome, but it requires more thought and discussion. "In the context of outsourced employment, hiring staff is the third-party agency's prerogative. The role of the government is to call for tenders to identify the agency to fill the required number of posts. The government will have to come out with detailed guidelines to ensure that the agency follows the reservation roster," he explained.
In May 2022, the state government had directed all departments to ensure 33% reservation for women in outsourced employment. The then Chief Secretary P Ravi Kumar had issued a circular stating that women are "equally capable" of handling the work normally outsourced to men such as driving, data entry, housekeeping and others.
Meanwhile at the event, responding to a question on introducing menstrual leave for women, Siddaramaiah said the government would examine this.
The government will also soon set up a selection committee for the appointment of members to various academies and authorities. "Strict screening will be done to ensure that those who are communal and disrupt social harmony will not find a place," he assured.