Know the Local Complaints Committee Members under POSH Act, 2013
The Local Complaints Committee (LCC) is undeniably a vital body as far as the implementation of the Prevention of Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013 (Act) goes. While it is mandatory for organisations with ten or more workers to create an ICC to resolve complaints of sexual harassment arising from within the organisation, the same cannot be said for those organisations which employ fewer than ten workers.
What kind of complaints can LCC address
The Local Complaints Committee is a redressal body under the Act, which is constituted to handle and resolve complaints of sexual harassment in the following scenarios and categories of women:
- Women who are employed in organizations with less than 10 members (unorganized sector)
- Women who work as domestic workers
- Women who work in organizations with more than 10 members, but the organizations do not have an ICC for the woman to approach.
Who are the members of LCC
While the law does prescribe certain guidelines for the appointment of members to the Local Complaints Committees, these requirements are not airtight, and there still exist certain problems that crop up while an LCC is built. According to the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013, the following are the criteria based on which the members of the LCC are nominated:
- Every LCC should comprise of five members
- At least three of those members must be women
- A chairperson is to be nominated from among women who are eminent in the field of social work and committed to the cause of women
- One member is to be nominated from amongst the women working in the block/taluka/tehsil/ward/municipality of the district
- Two members, of whom at least one is a woman are to be nominated from amongst such non-governmental organisations or associations committed to the cause of women, or must be individuals who are familiar with the issues relating to sexual harassment
- Provided that at least one of the nominees should, preferably, have a background in law or legal knowledge
- Provided, further, that at least one of the nominees shall be a woman belonging to Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe/ Other Backward Classes/ Minority Community as notified by the Central Government from time to time
- The officer dealing with the issue of social welfare or women and child development in the district will be an member of the LCC.
In comparison to the requirements for an ICC, the constitution of an LCC has far greater number of requirements for the nomination of its members. Here is a brief introduction to each member of a Local Complaints Committee:
Chairperson
The chairperson is required to be nominated from amongst the eminent women in the field of social work and committed to the cause of women. The very obvious problem lies in finding a woman who fulfils these criteria. Finding chairperson becomes a difficult task when such persons are not present in the District. This leads to most LCCs nominating people who are, in any way, connected with social work, without regard to its relevance. This leads to Chairpersons being selected merely by virtue of their being involved in social work, rather than their expertise in the issue of sexual harassment.
Women working in the block/tehsil/taluka/municipality level
The second member is to be nominated from among the women working in the block/taluka/tehsil/ward/municipality of the district. The requirement for such a person has been laid down in an ambiguous manner. For this reason, most of the members so nominated, are merely women working in the district. However, what is to be kept in mind in such cases is that the person who is nominated must also have a working knowledge of the issue of sexual harassment. This factor is often ignored in the formation of LCCs.
Remaining External Members
Of the two remaining members who are to be nominated, it is necessary that at least one of them be a woman. Further, these members must be nominated from such non-governmental organisations or associations committed to the cause of sexual harassment or persons who are familiar with the issue of sexual harassment. In a majority of the cases, the selection of the member is done on the basis of the first criteria, where the member is nominated merely due to the fact that she/he is a member of an NGO. This may result in members being involved in an NGO which deals with issues like domestic violence, however, the person nominated may not be the best possible choice. A person familiar with the issues relating to sexual harassment would be a much better choice, as she/he would be able to view the cases in an objective manner while reaching a decision.
Legal Background
While it would be ideal for at least one member of the LCC to have a background in law or legal knowledge, it is often difficult to find such a person in each district. The law does not mandate that such a person be compulsorily nominated to the LCC, but lays down that it is merely ‘preferable’ to do so. However, this leads to this condition being overlooked in a majority of cases where this criterion is not even considered while selecting the member.
Reserved Seats
Among the members of the LCC, it is required by the law that at least one of the members be a person belonging to a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe/Other Backward Class or any other minority community as may have been notified by the government from time to time. This poses a difficulty as, in most cases, there are very few people who are found who could fit the requirement. This also leads to nominations being made solely on the grounds of the person falling under one of the criterion mentioned.
The LCC must hear complaints from victims who do not have ICCs constituted in their workplaces. In these cases, it is vital for the LCC to maintain a sense of objectivity and treat the cases from each workplace on its merit. In order to ensure that a Local Complaints Committee is able to function in a proper manner, it is vital that the members nominated are appropriately qualified to perform their duties. However, as has been seen, finding the people for the LCCs is seldom easy. While choosing the people, it is often the case that the people are chosen due to individual qualities that they possess, rather than by taking a rounded view of the person and whether or not they would be able to discharge the functions required.While appointing the members of the LCC, it is vital that the appropriate persons are selected for the same. For this it is vital for the District Officer to have a proper understanding of the requirements for the members as has been laid down by the law.
Author: This post has been submitted by Rohit Iyengar, as part of his assignment with Ungender Insights. Rohit Iyengar is currently a student of NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.
Read our insights about diversity, legal updates and industry knowledge on workplace inclusion at Ungender Insights. Visit our Blog.
Sign up to stay up-to-date with our free e-mail newsletter.
The above insights are a product of our learning from our advisory work at Ungender. Our Team specialises in advising workplaces on gender centric laws.
or email us at contact@ungender.in
