New Delhi: The government on Thursday deferred a proposal on giving domestic workers the right over minimum wages, paid leave and regulated working hours under a national policy. The national policy for domestic workers, which would benefit over 6.4 million domestic workers, was slated to be taken up by the Union Cabinet for consideration.
The proposal, recommended by National Advisory Council (NAC) headed by Sonia Gandhi in April 2009, aimed at bringing domestic workers under the purview of existing labour laws, thus providing them all the rights and protection available to other workers. Gandhi had written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, saying the proposed policy should ensure remuneration without sex discrimination and protection against sexual harassment at work place to the target group. Labour and Employment Ministry had set up a task force to frame the policy spelling out a comprehensive social coverage for the huge domestic workforce such as paid annual leave and sick leave, protection from sexual harassment and social security coverage, including maternity benefits.
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03:15 AM, May 17, 2013
Hong Kong: A transsexual woman won an appeal in a Hong Kong court on Monday to marry her boyfriend, forcing the government to rewrite marriage laws in the city. The Court of Final Appeal, by a majority of four to one, ruled that the appellant, identified only as W, was entitled to be included as a woman and was therefore eligible to marry a man. "This is a victory for...
04:00 PM, May 13, 2013
London: Midwives and nurses in Ireland have warned that staff shortages at maternity units in the country could lead to a repeat of system failures that were blamed for Savita Halappanavar's death. The 31-year-old dentist had died at Galway University Hospital on October 28, 2012, after a miscarriage at 17 weeks. An inquest into her death in May was told how the medical team missed the early signs of blood...
03:30 PM, May 13, 2013
Los Angeles: Kardashian sisters Kourtney, Kim and Khloe were forced to rename their beauty brand after losing a year long trademark battle with a Florida based cosmetics company Kroma. The Kardashian sisters changed the name of their makeup line from Khroma Beauty to Kardashian Beauty, reported New York Daily news. The Kardashians' line of make up and nail polish hit the shelves last fall. The brand is managed by Santa...
06:07 PM, May 11, 2013
Washington: The Obama administration may seek to end a long-running debate over Internet wiretaps with proposed legislation that would enable law-enforcement agencies to tap into many types of Internet communications, US officials with knowledge of the matter said. The proposal is aimed at getting past the technical and legal obstacles that make it difficult for the FBI and other agencies with court orders to check so-called voice-over-Internet-protocol (VoIP) services such...
06:20 AM, May 09, 2013
New Delhi: The Irish cabinet has reached an agreement which will allow limited legal abortions for the first time ever. This historic bill is part of legislative changes that were promised after Indian dentist Savita Halappanavar died after she was denied a life-saving abortion. The new bill, which will have to be passed in both houses of the Irish Parliament, will allow for limited legal termination where there is a...
05:14 PM, May 01, 2013
Los Angeles: Fragrance company Adrenalina Inc. has filed a lawsuit against singer Selena Gomez for not binding to her contract. Adrenalina Inc. claims Gomez had signed a deal with the company in 2011. The deal gave them allowance to develop fragrance products using her name. However, Gomez and her agent reportedly ended the relationship with the company without giving a valid reason. She even refused to show up for the...
02:42 PM, Apr 27, 2013
New Delhi: The shock over gruesome rape and brutality of a five-year-old girl on Monday resonated in the Rajya Sabha with members cutting across party lines pressing for stern action, including death penalty, to deal with such crimes even if it needs a relook at the new anti-rape law. The House took up an impromptu discussion on the issue during which members also suggested an all-party meeting to find ways...
07:18 PM, Apr 22, 2013
Can electoral and police reforms bring about change in state of women's safety in India? Dr Kiran Bedi, former IPS officer and now a prominent social activist, shared her perspective in an interaction with IBNLive readers. Q. Just a few days ago when a conference on police reforms and public order was called by Union Home Minister, only 7 Chief Ministers chose to attend with the big names of Narendra...
07:13 PM, Apr 22, 2013
Are the new anti-rape laws ineffective? Women's rights activist Ranjana Kumari joined IBNLive readers for an interaction on the issue. Q. How to change mindset among small town men who come to work in metros? Asked by: Honey A. The most effective way of addressing violence is through education. Gender sensitisation must be incorporated into school curriculum and training programmes are required in community centres and workplaces. Only once we...
06:43 PM, Apr 22, 2013
London: The husband of an Indian dentist, who lost her life after being denied an abortion in Ireland, has indicated that he would consider further action in the case through the courts in Europe after a jury at her inquest ruled that she died of medical misadventure. An 11-member on Friday unanimously ruled that 31-year-old Savita Halappanavar died of "medical misadventure". Soon after the verdict, her husband Praveen Halappanavar said...
06:37 PM, Apr 20, 2013
London: Indian dentist Savita Halappanavar's husband on Friday said he is hopeful of a fair verdict in the inquest into his wife's death following a miscarriage in 2012. "I am still optimistic. The question that has always been in my mind is why Savita died. It has been very tough. Today was actually our wedding anniversary so it's even more hard. Hopefully there will be bright days ahead and something...
07:45 PM, Apr 19, 2013
Los Angeles: Hollywood action star Sylvester Stallone has settled his case against contractor Mohamed Hadid, who he sued for USD 1.4 million. The 'Rocky' actor alleged that Hadid did a bad job of renovating his property, describing him as an 'unscrupulous, unlicensed predator' but the case has now been settled out of court, reported TMZ online. Meanwhile, Hadid had claimed the 66-year-old actor threatened to blow his head off. He...
12:28 PM, Apr 14, 2013
Washington: Holding back tears, the mother of a six year-old boy, who was murdered alongside 19 other children in Connecticut four months ago, made a passionate plea from the White House for Americans and their leaders to embrace her call for stricter gun control laws. In a significant departure from the past, US President Barack Obama had asked Francine Wheeler to deliver his weekly radio and web address to the...
07:53 PM, Apr 13, 2013
Washington: Members of the Sikh community joined other religious leaders in urging the US Congress to pass strict gun control laws to prevent the recent surge in gun violence in the country, including the one at a Wisconsin Gurdwara in 2012. The religious leaders gathered on the National Mall in Washington on Friday amidst a makeshift graveyard -- 3,300 grave markers in all representing the number of people who have...
01:59 AM, Apr 13, 2013
Washington: In the rarest of the rare move, US President Barack Obama has asked the mother of a six-year-old killed in last December's Newtown massacre to stand in for him to address the nation this weekend. Obama's move comes as the White House continues it campaign to pressure Congress into passing stricter gun laws. "The President has asked Francine Wheeler, who lost her six-year-old son Ben on that terrible day,...
11:00 PM, Apr 12, 2013
Washington: Two senators announced on Wednesday that they have struck a bipartisan deal on expanding background checks to more firearms purchases, an agreement that could build support for President Barack Obama's drive to curb gun violence. Democratic Senator Joe Manchin and Republican Senator Pat Toomey announced their pact on Wednesday. Subjecting more firearms purchases to federal background checks has been the chief goal of Obama and gun control supporters, who...
07:46 AM, Apr 11, 2013
Washington: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday made one more push to have strict gun control laws, with back ground checks, through the US Congress where lawmakers are resisting his move. Reminding an audience in Hartford, Connecticut, about the death of innocent people due to several shooting incidents across the country including the firing on Sikh worshippers in Wisconsin, Obama said his fight is not about him. "This is not...
03:05 PM, Apr 09, 2013
Dublin: Ireland is set to begin an inquiry into the death of Indian dentist Savita Halappanavar. She had died in 2012 after an Irish hospital denied her an abortion due to the country's strict Catholic laws. More than 50 statements by health experts have been furnished in the case. Ireland has promised that the probe will be transparent and open to public scrutiny. The quality of care provided by the...
10:10 AM, Apr 08, 2013
New Delhi: Days after a CNN-IBN and FirstPost.com investigation found that ganglord Dawood Ibrahim's cash was washing up in the offshore banking haven of Nassau in The Bahamas in a Bank of Baroda branch, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has approached the channel seeking details into the report and has sought a copy of the CD. On Saturday, Finance Minister P Chidambaram had assured that officials will look...
06:15 PM, Apr 07, 2013
