NEW DELHI: The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) saw a robust rebound in net new subscribers with addition of 655,000 subscribers in June as industries and services resumed operations after two months of lockdown. Barely 20,000 and 172,000 subscribers were added to the EPFO in April and May respectively, resulting in net additions of about 847,000 in the first quarter of this financial year.

“The month of June has seen speedy recovery with addition of 6.55 lakh net subscribers registering a remarkable 280% month on month growth,” the EPFO said in a statement on Thursday. “The subscriber base growth is on account of increased number of new subscribers, lower exits and higher rejoining by exited members.”

New subscribers increased about 64% to 498,000 in June from 303,000 in May while exits from EPFO subscriber base declined nearly 33% to 296,000 in June from 445,000 in May. The EPFO saw net addition of 1.2 million subscribers in June this year while 2019-20 saw one million new subscribers on average every month.

Even the number of members who exited and then rejoined increased 44% in June from May, with more subscribers choosing to retain membership by transferring funds rather than opting for final settlement, said the EPFO. The data comprises all the new members who joined during the month and whose contribution was received.

The EPFO payroll data showed the enrolment of female workers went up to 106,059 in June from 37,085 in April in absolute terms, even though the overall female participation in the workforce remained low.

However, the highest jump in formal employment creation was in the expert service category which predominantly consist of manpower agencies, private security agencies and small contractors.

New Delhi: Mobile messaging platform Hike on Thursday said all its employees will work from home throughout this year and the company will spend up to Rs 40,000 per staffer to help them create a comfortable workspace at their home.

The company, however, has kept its office open for employees who want to access special technologies available within the premise for their work, it said.

Prioritising employee safety and well-being amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said it has adopted “remote-first approach for the rest of 2020.”

Backed by global investors including SoftBank, Tiger Global, Tencent, Foxconn and Bharti Enterprises, Hike has over 160 employees at present.

The company, in a statement, said that “valuing employee wellbeing over everything else, Hike’s move to a remote-first culture would make working remotely their default modus operandi.”

However, for those looking to come to the office, it will remain an option with strict guidelines to ensure social distancing and sanitation.

Hike has that it will spend up to Rs 40,000 per employee to help them create a workspace at home.

“Hike would be delivering an ergonomic office chair and a brand new compact office table to its employees residing in Delhi NCR.

“For employees presently outside of Delhi NCR Hike has announced a reimbursement of up to Rs 10,000 for the purchase of their own chair and table to set up their workstation at home,” the statement said.

Hike would also be supporting its employees for any internet and IT accessories requirement.