We wanted to update you on a significant (proposed) development for private establishments in Karnataka.

• As per latest news reports, Karnataka Labour Department is preparing a Bill to, among other things, reserve up to 5% of private-sector jobs for persons with disabilities (“PwDs“). As reported, the concept note to the Bill is slated for Cabinet discussion, and the Bill is proposed to be introduced in the legislature in the winter session.
• From a legislative framework perspective, it is important to note that the central statute – the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (“RPwD Act“) – already contains an enabling provision aimed at increasing PwD representation in the private sector. Specifically, Section 35 (reproduced below) empowers the appropriate government, within the limits of its economic capacity and development, to provide incentives to private‑sector employers to ensure that at least 5% of their workforce comprises of persons with benchmark disabilities. In other words, the existing framework already contemplates a policy lever to expand PwD engagement in the private sector.
  Section 35. Incentives to employers in private sector.—The appropriate Government and the local authorities shall, within the limit of their economic capacity and development, provide incentives to employer in private sector to ensure that at least five per cent of their work force is composed of persons with benchmark disability.

• For your note, currently, under the RPwD Act, binding reservation applies to government establishments, not private establishments. Private employers (engaging 20 or more persons) are only required to identify posts suitable for PwDs and ensure non‑discriminatory practices, but there is presently no statutory obligation today to hire a fixed quota of PwDs.
• From a policy and compliance standpoint, if the proposal is enacted substantially as reported, private employers in Karnataka will need to plan their recruitment and workforce strategies to meet PwD reservation thresholds, and close attention will be required to how employer incentives and enforcement mechanisms are designed in the final text of the Bill.