Business Laws and Ethics · Factories Act, 1948

Duties of Employer, Occupier and Inspector-cum-Facilitator

Updated 10 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Under the OSH Code, 2020, the employer and occupier must keep the workplace safe and healthy, and comply with the Code. Inspector-cum-Facilitators, appointed by the appropriate Government under section 34, inspect, inquire, seize documents and also advise employers. Section 35 lists their powers. Answer by naming the person, the duty or power, and the section.

Understand Duties of Employer, Occupier and Inspector-cum-Facilitator

The old Factories Act, 1948 is now replaced by the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (OSH Code). Your chapter is titled Factories Act, 1948, but the law you must apply is the Code. Be ready to use the Code's terms in answers.

Think of the topic as three actors. The employer and the occupier run the workplace and carry the duty to keep it safe, healthy and compliant. The Inspector-cum-Facilitator is the government officer who checks compliance. The appropriate Government appoints that officer and decides how inspections are run.

The name matters. The officer is not only an inspector. The word "Facilitator" reflects a second job: to supply information and sensitise employers and workers about the Code and how to comply (section 35(1)(v)). Examiners like this point.

Section 34 deals with appointment and structure. Section 35 deals with powers. Learn them as two separate lists. Section 34 answers "who is the officer and how is the officer chosen". Section 35 answers "what can the officer do".

The text supplied to you covers sections 34 and 35 only. Questions on registration of establishments and on the detailed general duties of employers and occupiers should be answered from your ICMAI study material. Here, only one registration link is certain: the inspection scheme gives each establishment a unique number, the same as its registration number under section 3 (section 34(4)(a)).

Key rules to remember

Appointment of Inspector-cum-Facilitators: Section 34(1): appropriate Government, by notification, appoints; each officer acts within the jurisdiction specified; Appointment is always by notification.
Inspection scheme: Section 34(3): web-based inspection, calling of information electronically, randomised selection of establishment and officer; Scheme is laid down by the appropriate Government by notification.
Scheme design factors: Section 34(4): (a) unique numbers; (b) timely uploading of reports; (c) special inspections; (d) nature of work and workplace; The unique number of an establishment equals its registration number under section 3.
Chief and senior officers: Section 34(5)-(7): Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator; Additional, Joint, Deputy Chiefs exercise Chief's powers as notified, plus Inspector-cum-Facilitator powers in their local limits; A Chief may be appointed for a State, several States or the whole country.
Disqualification: Section 34(8): no person who is directly or indirectly interested in a workplace, work activity, process, business, plant or machinery connected with it may be appointed or continue in office; Ensures independence.
Status: Section 34(11): deemed public servant under section 21 of the Indian Penal Code; officially subordinate to authority specified by the appropriate Government; Applies to all officers appointed under section 34.
Powers of Inspector-cum-Facilitator: Section 35(1)(i)-(xiv): enter, inspect, inquire, require documents, search or seize, take samples, issue show cause notice, prosecute; Powers are subject to any rules made.
Duty to produce documents: Section 35(2): a person required to produce a document or give information is legally bound to do so (IPC sections 175 and 176); Refusal has legal consequences.
Search and seizure procedure: Section 35(3): Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 applies so far as may be, as to a search under a warrant under its section 94; Procedure follows the criminal procedure law.

How to solve Duties of Employer, Occupier and Inspector-cum-Facilitator questions

Use this method for any question on the duties of an employer, occupier or Inspector-cum-Facilitator.

1Identify the person asked about: employer, occupier, Inspector-cum-Facilitator or Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator.
2Decide whether the question is about appointment and structure (section 34) or powers (section 35).
3Name the Code in full: the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020, and mention that it replaces the Factories Act, 1948 framework.
4List the relevant points in the exact words of the law, grouping them: entry and inspection, inquiry, documents, samples, enforcement.
5Add the facilitation role: informing and sensitising employers and workers (section 35(1)(v)).
6Apply the rule to any facts given and state a clear conclusion.
7For employer and occupier duties and registration, use your ICMAI study material and avoid quoting section numbers you are unsure of.

Quickest way: Three-bucket recall for officer questions

When to use it: Use for short notes and MCQs on Inspector-cum-Facilitators when time is tight.

Bucket 1, Who: appointed by notification of the appropriate Government; Chief and Additional, Joint, Deputy Chiefs above; section 34.
Bucket 2, What: enter, inspect, inquire, demand documents, search or seize, sample, show cause, prosecute; section 35.
Bucket 3, Limits: no personal interest in the workplace; deemed public servant; subordinate to specified authority.
Then check the question for a trap word such as notification, randomised, web-based or facilitator.

Common mistakes in Duties of Employer, Occupier and Inspector-cum-Facilitator

Calling the officer only an Inspector and ignoring the facilitator role.
Old Factories Act notes use the word Inspector.
Fix: State that the officer also supplies information and sensitises employers and workers (section 35(1)(v)).
Writing that the Factories Act, 1948 section numbers apply.
The chapter title still carries the old Act's name.
Fix: Cite the OSH Code, 2020 sections 34 and 35 for the officer.
Saying officers are appointed by the Chief Inspector.
Confusion between appointment and delegation.
Fix: Appointment is by the appropriate Government by notification. The Chief may only authorise use of his powers, with Government approval (section 34(10)).
Forgetting the conflict of interest bar.
Students memorise only powers.
Fix: Add that a person interested in a workplace, process, plant or machinery cannot be appointed or continue (section 34(8)).
Treating inspections as chosen freely by the officer.
Ignoring the scheme.
Fix: Mention that the Government may provide for web-based inspection and randomised selection of establishment and officer (section 34(3)).
Saying an officer may destroy suspect articles.
Misreading the testing power.
Fix: The officer may direct dismantling or testing but not so as to damage or destroy, unless necessary for the Code's purposes (section 35(1)(xi)).

Worked examples

Example 1

Explain the powers of an Inspector-cum-Facilitator under the OSH Code, 2020 (any six).

Show the solution

Source: section 35(1), subject to any rules made.
Entry: may enter any place used, or believed to be used, as a workplace, with assistance of government persons, public authority staff or an expert.
Inspection: may inspect and examine the establishment, premises, plant, machinery, articles and other relevant material.
Inquiry: may inquire into any accident or dangerous occurrence, whether or not it caused injury, disability or death, and take statements.
Documents: may require production of any register or document, and search, seize or copy records where an offence is believed to have been committed.
Samples: may take samples of articles, substances and the air in or near the premises, as prescribed.
Enforcement: may issue a show cause notice on safety, health and welfare provisions, and prosecute or defend proceedings under the Code.
Add that a person required to produce documents is legally bound to do so (section 35(2)).

Answer: Under section 35(1) the officer may enter, inspect, inquire into accidents, require documents, seize records, take samples and issue show cause notices, and also prosecute. He also informs and sensitises employers and workers.

Example 2

Mr. Rao, who owns a share in a Pune engineering workshop, is proposed as Inspector-cum-Facilitator for the area covering that workshop. Can he be appointed? Would your answer change if he is appointed and later buys an interest?

Show the solution

Appointments are made by notification of the appropriate Government (section 34(1)).
Section 34(8) bars appointment of any person who is directly or indirectly interested in a workplace or work activity, or in any process or business carried on in it, or in connected plant or machinery.
Mr. Rao holds a share in the workshop, so he has a direct interest.
The same section also bars a person from continuing in office if he becomes so interested.
So the answer does not change for the later purchase.

Answer: He cannot be appointed. If he becomes interested after appointment, he cannot continue to hold office. The rule protects the independence of the officer.

Exam tips

Write section 34 for appointment and section 35 for powers, and keep them apart.
In MCQs, watch for options that say the Chief Inspector appoints or that inspection is always at the officer's discretion. Both are wrong.
For a six-mark list, give at least six distinct powers from section 35(1) with one-line explanations.
Mention the facilitation role; it is a favourite scoring point.
For employer and occupier duties and registration, use your ICMAI material and give a clear, structured list rather than guessing section numbers.

Practice questions from Factories Act, 1948

Duties of Employer, Occupier and Inspector-cum-Facilitator in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

Duties of Employer, Occupier and Inspector-cum-Facilitator: frequently asked questions

Who appoints Inspector-cum-Facilitators under the OSH Code?

The appropriate Government appoints them by notification. The notification specifies the jurisdiction in which each officer acts. This is in section 34(1).

Can an Inspector-cum-Facilitator seize documents?

Yes. Under section 35(1)(vii) the officer may search or seize, or take copies of, registers, records or documents where he has reason to believe an offence under the Code has been committed. The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 applies to the search so far as may be.

What is the facilitation role of the officer?

The officer supplies information and sensitises employers and workers about the Code and how to comply. This is section 35(1)(v). It is why the post is called Inspector-cum-Facilitator.

Is an Inspector-cum-Facilitator a public servant?

Yes. Section 34(11) deems every officer appointed under that section to be a public servant under section 21 of the Indian Penal Code. The officer is officially subordinate to the authority the appropriate Government specifies.