MMC gets approval regarding biometric workforce management

Following much debate and resistance, the director of municipal administration in Margao, India, has given the go-ahead to implement a biometric workforce management system at the Margao Municipal Council.

Reported previously in BiometricUpdate.com, this debate has been on-going since early this year as many grievances had been filed regarding the workforce management system, including questions over discipline for lateness as well as instances where leaving early or arriving late is necessary.

Reported in the Times of India, most recently, the debate has been centered on whether there are justifiable provisions in statutes governing the service rules of municipal employees.

Deepali Naik, the chief officer of the Margao Municipal Council, when asked about this debate by the Times of India, dismissed the argument, saying “the MMC is an autonomous body, and therefore whatever orders or circulars are issued by the chief officer, they are binding on the employees.”

Workforce management systems are being implemented in various sectors all over the world, though India seems to be a hotbed for these systems as of late.

Reported previously in BiometricUpdate.com, the Delhi High Court has issued a contempt notice to Delhi University for not implementing a biometric workforce system for its teachers, following a mandate instructing the school to do so.

The union representing Margao’s municipal workers is not the first to ardently oppose an implementation like this — many unions and organizations representing workers have taken a fundamental stance against forms of workforce management, particularly with biometric systems.

Reported previously in BiometricUpdate.com, teachers in government schools in Andhra Pradesh have threatened to strike against a proposed biometric attendance system.

Similarly, faculty members at Florida Gulf Coast University have twice voted to reject biometric fingerprinting for the school’s 1,000 employees.

Article Topics

workforce management