labor-d

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REPORT OF THE NATIONAL COMMISSION ON LABOUR

CHAPTER-XI

LABOUR

ADMINISTRATION

There is perhaps no Department or Ministry that deals so exclusivelywith human relations as the Labour Ministry, and that too, largely bypersuasion and introspection rather than coercion. It does have theresponsibility of enforcing laws that relate to employment and industrialrelations, but its role in this eld too is not punitive, but one of vigil andprosecution before a court of law.

.! It does not need many arguments or adducing of evidence to prove

that the health of the economy of the country, and conse"uently, the daily life

of the common people as well as the elite depends upon harmony in

industrial relations. It is di#cult, therefore, to over$state the importance of

good industrial relations. It is not often reali%ed that even the defence of

the frontiers or the internal security of the country depends ultimately on a

viable and e#cient economy, and this, in turn, depends on industrial

relations. There is no reason to thin& that the maintenance of good

industrial

relations which is the responsibility of the Ministry of Labour is less

important than the responsibi li ty that any other Ministry holds.

'nfortunately, this reali%ation has not been very much in evidence. (erhaps

the reasons for this are)

*a+ perception, which sees the Ministry more as related to the welfare

of labour, and a paternalistic attitude.

*b+ The fact that the performance of the Ministry of Labour is not

"uantiable.

These attitudes miss the crucial role of industrial relations as the fulcrum on

which the e#ciency of the economy rests and turns.

.- Those who lead and man/ the Ministry should therefore, have the highest

degree of competence, vision, empathy, tact, s&ill in the arts of

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persuas ion and inducing introspection, and activating social and group

consciences. 0e, therefore, thin& that these considerat ions

1


should govern the choice of the Minister as well as the top echelons of the

bureaucracy that bear responsibility for the functioning of the Ministry.

They should also, mutatis mutandis, govern the recruitment and placement

of o#cers and sta1 at every level, and every department of the Ministry.

.2 In the eld also, o#cers must be invested with su#cient authority to attract

due deference and compliance, and should be provided with ade"uate

infrastructural facilit ies that they re"uire to carry out their arduous wor&

over far$3ung areas. In the course of our tours to hear evidence, we werestruc& by the total inade"uacy of these facilities. Many o#cers told us that

they had to wor& from o#ces that were apolog ies for rooms, with

inade"uate and shoddy furniture. They were expected to receive managers of

industries and leaders of trade union organi%ations in such rooms. 4ften the

unseemly conditions of the o# ce made o#cers of managerial levels or

high$level leaders of trade unions reluctant to answer calls and attend

discussions in such ramshac&le o#ces, housed in dirty buildings that

belonged to others. The o#cials of the Labour Department5Ministry werehamstrung

to the point of being crippled by the absence of transport and

telephone facilities. During our visit to various 6tate capitals, we were

informed that the 7handigarh region of the 7entral Industri al

8elations Machinery *7I8M+, which comprises the 6tates of 9aryana,

(un:ab, 9imachal (radesh, ;

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2


eld. 0e cannot understand how eld o#cers of this &ind can function

without instruments of communication or mobility. 0e will, therefore,

strongly recommend that o#cers of the Labour Department should be

provided with o#ces, infrastructure and facilities commensurate with the

functions they have, and the dignity they should have.

.? Labour dministration means public administration activities to

translate the national labour policy into action. s we have said earlier,

labour policy in India draws inspiration and strength partly from the ideas and

declarations of important national leaders during the freedom struggle,

partly from the debates in the 7onstituent ssembly, partly from the

provisions of the 7onstitution, and partly from International 7onventions

and 8ecommendations. It has also been signicantly in3uenced by the

deliberations of the various sessions of the Indian Labour 7onference and the

recommendations of various @ational 7ommittees and 7ommissions,

such as, the 8oyal 7ommission on Labour, the @ational 7ommission on

Labour ABA, the @ational 7ommission on 8ural Labour AA, and the li&e.

.B India has ratied a total of -A 7onventions adopted at di1 erent sessions

of the International Labour 4rganisation. These include conventions on

hours of wor&, unemployment, night wor&, minimum wages, wee&ly rest,wor&ers / compensation, forced labour, labour inspection, child labour,

underground wor& and e"ual remuneration for men and women for wor& of

a similar nature. 0e are appending a list of the -A 7onventions, as ppendix

I at the end of this 7hapter.

.C 0ith growth in the dimensions and variety of industrial activity and changes

in the agricultural sector, the tas& of labour administration has become

increasingly di#cult. It calls for comprehension, sensitivity, expedition

and e#ciency at every stage. To enable industries to be competitive in

the present context, and at the same time to protect the rights of

wor&ers, labour administration has to provide an industrial relations

system, which induces the adoption of a new mindset and

participatory culture including the development of appropriate s&ills.

4n the enforcement side, labour adminis$ tration has to ensure

e1 ective enforcement of labour laws.

3REPORT OF THE NATIONAL COMMISSION ON LABOUR

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. Labour dministration in India is mostly rooted in labour laws. There are only a

few activities that are not based on laws. They are mostly in the eld of

wor&ers/ education and craftsmen training other than apprenticeship

training, etc.

.A t the 7entre, the Ministry of Labour, and in the 6tates, Labour

Departments are responsible for labour administration in India. A

enactments are enforced by the Ministry of Labour. 4ut of these

enactments, the enforcement of 2 enactments is secured through the

organi%ation of the 7hief Labour 7ommissioner *7entral+. The

organi%ation of the Director Eeneral Mines 6afety enforces the safety

provisions of the Mines ct, and the Director Eeneral Factory dvice

6ervice and Labour Institute *DEF6LI+ advises government, industry

and other interests concerned on matters relating to health, welfare and thesafety of wor&ers. It also provides training to the wor&men on safety in

factories. The organi%ation of DE F6LI is also charged with responsibility

for the enforcement of the Doc& 0or&ers *8egulation of Gmployment+ ct,

A2.

CHIEF LABOUR COMMISSIONER (CENTRAL)

.H The 7hief Labour 7ommissioner/s organi%ation has the responsibility to

enforce the Industrial Disputes ct, A2, the (ayment of 0ages ct, A-B

and 8ules in respect of Mines, 8ailways and ir Transport 6ervices, the

Minimum 0ages ct, A2, the 7ontract Labour *8egulation and bolition+

ct, ACH, the G"ual 8emuneration ct, ACB, the Interstate Migrant

0or&men *8Gonus ct AB?, 7hild Labour

*(rohibition and 8egulation+ ct, AB, (ayment of Eratuity ct, AC!,

Labour Laws *Gxemption from furnishing and maintaining registers

by certain establishments+ ct, A, >uilding and 4ther 7onstruction

0or&ers *8Genet ct,

AB *Mines and 7ircus 8ules, AB-+ for organisat ions where the

7entral Eovernment is the appropriate government. The 7entral

(rovident Fund 7ommissioner enforces the Gmployees (rovident Fund

ct. The

4


Director Eeneral, Gmployees 6tate Insurance 7orporation enforces the G6I

ct.

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. The 4rganisation of the 7hief Labour 7ommissioner *7entral+ &nown as

*7I8M+ was set up in pril A2?, in pursuance of the recommendation of the

8oyal 7ommission on Labour in India with the speci c duty of preventing

and settling industrial disputes, enforcing labour laws and promoting the

welfare of wor&ers in the underta&ings falling in the sphere of the 7entral

Eovernment. 7ombining the former 4rganisation of 7oncilia tion 4# cers

*8ai lways+ , 6upervisors of 8ailway Labour and the Labour 0elfare dvisors,

it started with a small complement of sta1, comprising the 7hief Labour

7ommissioner *7entral+ at @ew Delhi,

- 8egional Labour 7ommissioners *7entral+ J8L7s*7+K at >ombay,

7alcutta and Lahore, 7onciliation 4#cers and Labour Inspectors. s a

conse"uence of the increase in the number of labour laws, and the

number of industrial establishments, the responsibilities of the 4rganisation

have increased enormously, and the number of o#cers too has increased.

.! The present set$up of the 4rganisation consists of the 7hief Labour

7ommissioner *7entral+ at the 9ead 4#ce in @ew Delhi, - onal 4# ces

headed by Deputy 7hief Labour 7ommissioners*7+ at >angalore,

Dhanbad and Mumbai, and 8egional 4#ces headed by 8egional

Labour 7ommissioners*7+ at hmedabad, :mer, sansol, >angalore,

>hubaneshwar, 7handigarh, 7hennai, 7ochin, Dhanbad, Euwahati,

9yderabad, ;abalpur, =anpur, =ol&ata, Mumbai, @agpur, @ew Delhi and(atna. The 7hief Labour 7ommissioner *7entral+ is assisted at head"uarters

by a ;oint 7hief Labour 7ommissioner*7+, a 7hief dvisor *Labour

0elfare+,

- Deputy 7hief Labour 7ommissioners*7+, a Director * Training+, -

8egional Labour 7ommissioners*7+, an dministrative 4# cer and ?

ssistant Labour 7ommissioners *7+, along with supporting sta1. The

eldwor& is done by Labour Gnforcement 4# cers*7+, ssistant

Labour 7ommissioners*7+ and 8egional Labour 7ommissioners*7+.

.- The 4#ce of 7hief Labour 7ommissioner *7entral+ performs various

duties relating to several laws

5


and regulations. It performs three types of :obs while implementing the labour

laws enforcement, conciliation and "uasi$:udicial.

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.2 The 4rganisation of the 7hief Labour 7ommissioner *7entral+ is

responsible for)

*a+ (revention and settlement of industrial disputes in the 7entral sphere, i.e.

mines, oi le lds, ma:or ports, ban&ing and insurance companies,

industries carried on by or under the 7entral Eovernment or by arailway company, cont rolled industries specied by the 7entral

Eovernment, Gmployees 6tate Insurance 7orporation, Gmployees

(rovident Fund 4rganisat ion, air t ransport services, agricultural

nancial

corporations, Industrial Development >an& of India, Deposit Insurance

7orporation, 'nit Trust of India and cantonment boardsN

*b+ Gnforcement of awards and settlements in the 7entral sphereNand

*c+ dministration and enforcement of the labour laws mentioned at para

.H.

PROSECUTION

.? 4n an average, -2 to -? thousand inspections are conducted in a yearand ! to B thousand prosecution cases are led. These have resulted in

conviction in BHHH to C?HH cases. 4nly ! to ?O cases have ended in

ac"uittal.

Year No. of

in!e"#ion

No. of

Proe"$#ion

No. of

"on%i"#ion

No. of

a"&$i##a'

AAA$!HHH -2??

CB2 ?A- H

!HHH$!HH -2AB

BHCH C2C? -B

6


CLAIM CASES

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.B 4n an average, ?HH to !!HH claim cases are disposed of in a year,

and a sum of 8s. crore to .? crore is awarded to the wor&ers as

di1erence in wages and compensation under the Minimum 0ages ct.

UASI UDICIAL FUNCTIONS

.C The "uasi :udicial functions performed by the o# cers of 4rganisationof the 7hief Labour 7ommissioner *7entral+ are)

Designation Puasi$:udicial functions performed

7L7*7+ i+ Director Eeneral under >uilding and 4ther7onstruction 0or&ers *8Guilding and 4ther7onstruction 0or&ers *8Gesides, the 4rganisation of the 7hief Labour 7ommissioner *7entral+ isalso responsible for )

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*a+ revising Dearness llowance under the Minimum 0ages ct for 7entral

sphere establishments,

*b+ verifying the membership of unions a#liated to 7entral Trade 'nion

4rganisations for the purpose of giving representation in national

and international conferences and committees, as also of unions for

the purpose of recognition under the 7ode of DisciplineN

*c+ verifying membership for the appointment of 0or&men/s Director

in the 6tate >an& of India and other nationalised ban&s, etc.,

*d+ advising the Ministry of Labour and employing Ministr ies on labour

matters as and when re"uired,

*e+ collecting statistics regarding industrial disputes, wor&$

stoppage and loc&outs, wages etc. in the 7entral sphere

establishmentsN

*f+ in"uiring into breaches of 7ode of Discipline,

*g+ coordination of the wor& of ssistant Labour 0elfare

7ommissioners and Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners posted

in 7entral Eovernment underta&ings, and giving them guidance in

their day$to$day wor&, and liaison with 6tate Eovernment Labour

Departments for collection of information as per the direction of the

Ministry of Labour.

APPROPRIATE *O+ERNMENT

.A 'nder each enactment, enforced by the 4rganisation of the 7hief Labour

7ommissioner *7entral+ and the 6tate Labour 7ommissioners, there is a

separate denition of the Qappropriate governmentR except under the

Industrial Disputes ct, the (ayment of >onus ct and the 7ontract

Labour *8egulation < bolition+ ct. The (ayment of >onus

8


ct has the same denition of appropriate government as the

Industrial Disputes ct. Initially, at the time of enactment, the denition of

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appropriate government in 7ontract Labour *8egulation < bolition+ ct was

di1erent. In AB, 7ontract Labour *8egulation < bolition+ ct too

adopted the same denition of appropriate government as in the

Industrial Disputes ct. This has given rise to a problem. The denition of the

appropriate government under the Industrial Disputes ct is based on the

nature of industries etc. and the 7ontract Labour *8egulation <bolition+ ct applies even to government departments. s per the

denition of appropriate government in the 7ontract Labour *8egulation <

bolition+ ct, even the 7entral Eovernment departments do not come

under 7entral sphere.

.!H 'nder the Minimum 0ages ct, the 7entral Eovernment is the

appropriate government for corporations established by 7entral cts.

This is not the case in other enactments except the (ayment of Eratui ty

ct and the Industrial Gmployment *6tanding 4rders+ ct.

.! 'nder the (ayment of Eratuity ct, the 7entral Eovernment is the

appropriate government for all 7entral Eovernment public sector

underta&ings and establishments having branches in more than one

6tate.

.!! 'nder the >uilding and 4ther 7onstruction 0or&ers *8G

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been interpreted by the court in di1erent ways from time to time leading to

considerable confusion and doubts.

.!? In the 9eavy Gngineering 7orporation *ABA I 677 CB?+, the 9on/ble

6upreme 7ourt relied on the private law interpretation of the denition

of the appropriate government, and held that the 7entral Eovernment was

not the appropriate government for central public sector underta&ings. >y

relying on the common law interpretation, the apex court in the ir India

6tatutory 7orporation case *AAC I LL; ? 67+ held that the central

public sector underta&ings were the instru$ mentalities of the 7entral

Eovernment, and, as such, the 7entral Eovernment was the appropriate

government for all central public sector underta&ings. gain in the 6IL

s. @ational 0aterfront 0or&ers 'nion on -H ugust !HH, *!HH II LL;

HC 67+ a ve :udge 7onstitution >ench of thepex 7ourt observed that the private law interpretation in the 9G7 case was

correct. The 7entral Eovernment is not the appropriate government for all

public sector underta&ings, as the mere fact of instrumentality of the

7entral Eovernment does not mean they are under the control of the

7entral Eovernment. The apex court, while clarifying the expression Qby or

under the authority of 7entral EovernmentR, has observed that such

authority may be conferred by a statute or by principal and agent

relationship between the 7entral Eovernment and the public sectorunderta&ings or by delegation of powers by the 7entral Eovernment. It is

this situation that ma&es it necessary to have a clear and

unambiguous de nit ion of the appropriate government/.

.!B 0e have already referred to the need to have uniformity in the denition

of the term wor&man/ that appears in many laws.

.!C 0e hope that both these di#culties will be resolved when theamendments that we have suggested in 7hapter I are adopted.

10


SIMPLIFICATION OF RE*ISTERS AND RETURNS

.! Many enactments re"uire maintenance of di1erent registers,

display of di1erent sets of notices and submission of di1erent returns.

railway contractor, employing !H wor&ers, is re"uired to maintain !

do%en registers, display a do%en notices, and submit B returns every year.

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Though there is provision under the (ayment of 0ages ct, Minimum 0ages

ct and 7ontract Labour *8egulation < bolition+ ct to maintain

combined registers with the approval of the 7hief Labour 7ommissioner

*7entral+, the process has proved to be time$consuming and cumbersome.

.!A The Labour Laws *Gxemption from Furnishing 8eturns andMaintaining 8egisters by 7ertain Gstablishments+ ct A made an

attempt to simplify registers and returns. 'nder this ct, only ! or -

registers need be maintained, and only one return need be submitted in

l ieu of registers and returns prescribed under several enactments

mentioned in the schedule to the ct. >ut this law has proved inade"uate

since it applies to establishments employing wor&men not exceeding A, and

the penalty prescribed under the ct is higher than that in the ct that it

replaces. 9igh penalties also discourage employers from ta&ing advantage of

the ct.

.-H 0e have recommended elsewhere that the Labour Laws *Gxemption

from Furnishing 8eturns and Maintaining 8egisters by 7ertain

Gstablishments+ ct, A should be made applicable to all establishments,

and the penalty prescribed under the respective laws should be enhanced to

ma&e it at par with the Labour Laws *Gxemption from Furnishing 8eturns

and Maintaining 8egisters by 7ertain Gstablishments+ ct, A.

PLACE OF MAINTENANCE OF RE*ISTERS AND DISPLAY OF NOTICES

.- Di1erent enactments prescribe di1erent places for maintenance of

registers and display of notices. For instance, the Minimum 0ages ct lays

down that registers should be maintained and notices displayed at the wor&

spot. 'nder the (ayment of

11


0ages ct, reg isters are to be maintained as near as possible to the wor&

spot. 'nder the 7ontract Labour *8egulation < bolition+ ct, registers are

re"uired to be maintained within a radius of - =ms from the wor&spot. Thus,

an inspector intending to inspect an establishment under di1erent

enactments may be re"uired to visit several places. 0e therefore,

recommended that the exist ing provis ions should be amended to

provide for maintenance of registers and display of notices at the wor& spot.

SIMPLIFICATION OF PRO- CEDURES

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.-!To launch prosecution for non$ payment of wages under the (ayment of 0ages

ct, or for payment of less than minimum rates of wages under Minimum

0ages ct, the inspector is re"uired to le a claim rst before the (ayment

of 0ages uthority or Minimum 0ages uthority respectively. fter

admission of the claim either in full or in part, the inspector has to obtain

sanction for prosecution from the (ayment of 0ages uthority in the case of claims under (ayment of 0ages ct. In the case of the

Minimum 0ages ct, after admission of the claim, sanction is to be

obtained from the appropriate government. 0e recommend that the

procedure for prosecution for non$ payment of wages or payment of less

than minimum rates of wages should be simplied. 0e have referred to this

in detail elsewhere.

PENALTY

.-- The penalty prescribed under di1erent enactments does not act as a

deterrent. For an employer, it is easier to pay penalty than to appoint a

person and pay him wages for maintaining records and registers. 0e

therefore, suggest that to ma&e the enforcement e1ective, there should

be commensurately deterrent punishment under all enactments.

RECO+ERY PRO+ISIONS

.-2 4ne of the di#culties in the e1ective enforcement of labour laws is the

procedure for recovery. 'nder most of the enactments, o#cers of the labour

departments or the "uasi$

12


:udicial authorities are re"uired to le a cert icate before the district

administration for recovery of the amount as arrears of land revenue. Theuthority under the Minimum 0ages ct has to submit a petition before

the ;udicia l Magistrate to recover the awarded amount as the ne

imposed by the Magist rate. pplications led before the district

administration do not get the priority they deserve, resulting either in delay

or non$recovery of the wor&ers/ dues, when the receipt of the dues are of

urgent importance to the wor&ers. 6imilarly, when petitions are led

before Magistrates, many of them start hearing de novo resulting in

either delay or non$recovery of dues. 0e, therefore, suggest that theenactments li&e (ayment of 0ages ct and Minimum 0ages ct should

contain a prov is ion for recovery o#cers appointed by the Labour

Department, as has been done in the case of G(F ct *6ection $>+.

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PO,ER TO EXEMPT

.-? 4ften the industries wor&ing in export processing %ones, export$

oriented units and employers of information technology industries

demand exemption from certain

provisions of the cts. There can be other situations also in which

exemption from a law may merit consideration. 6ome of our present laws

already have provisions for exemption from some or all the provisions

*0e have referred to this sub:ect in the 7hapter of 8eview of Laws also+.

0e, therefore, recommend that provisions to grant exemptions in cases

of extreme emergency or hardship, should vest with the appropriate

government, and should be vested in o#cers not below the ran& of ;oint

6ecretary. The advantage in such a system is that if there is any abuse of exemption, it can be withdrawn by an administrative order. 9owever, if

the exemption is granted by amending the provisions of law, an abuse, if it

ta&es place, cannot be chec&ed until the provisions are suitably

amended again.

MINIMUM ,A*ES ACT

.-B t present, the Minimum 0ages ct applies to only scheduledemployments. Therefore, minimum wages cannot be enforced in non$

scheduled employments. This di#culty can be obviated if the

6chedule is amended to include an

13


entry Q4ther Gmployments not covered in the 6cheduleR or all schedules are

given up as recommended in the 7hapter on 8eview of Laws. This will ensurepayment of minimum wages to all wor&men.

TRIAL OF CASES UNDER LABOUR LA,S

.-C0itnesses who appeared before us mentioned that there is inordinate

delay in the disposal of penal cases led before the 7ourts. These 7ourts

deal with prosecutions, not only under labour laws, but also other laws, such

as, those relating to 0eights < Measures, Tra#c, (revention of Food

dulteration, etc., and also loo& after criminal matters relating to specied

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(olice 6tations. To avoid delays, we recommend that criminal cases under

labour laws be tried by Labour 7ourts, as is being done in Madhya (radesh.

CONCILIATION

.- There is a popular perception that the process of conciliation is note1ective in resolving industrial disputes. This perception is only partially

correct as the record of conciliation e1orts by the 7entral Industrial 8elations

Machinery shows. 7onciliation has not been as e1ective in the case of rights

disputes, as in the case of interest disputes. In fact, conciliation has an

impressive record in interest disputes.

RI*HTS DISPUTES

.-A In rights disputes over dismissal, denial of regularisation, promotion,

etc., conciliation should be optional. The party should have the right to

approach Labour 7ourts and the Labour 8elations 7ommission

straightway. 9owever, conciliation should be compulsory in case of

industrial disputes related to interests disputes, li&e wages, allowances,

fringe bene ts etc. 7onciliation proceedings should also be

compulsory in the case of stri&es and loc&outs over any issue. The success of

the 7entral Industrial 8elations Machinery in the case of intervention on

threatened stri&es in the years AAA$HH and !HHH$H may be seen from

the table given on the next page

14


Sear >rought

Forward

8eceived

Total @o. of

stri&es

6uccess

rate

AAA$HH 2 C2! C- C2 A2.BO

!HHH$H 2! ?B B-H B!! A.CO

This undoubtedly shows a high degree of success.

ARBITRATION

.2H Industrial disputes not settled in conciliation should go for either voluntary

arbitration or by arbitrators maintained by the Labour 8elations 7ommission

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or ad:udication. In the case of essential services li&e health and sanitation,

transport, power and water supply etc., the dispute should go for

compulsory arbitration. In other cases, it should go for ad:udication.

rbitrators should be chosen from eminent persons in industry,

conciliators, trade unionists and labour :udiciary.

RECO*NITION OF TRADE UNIONS- BAR*AININ* A*ENT

NE*OTIATIN* COUNCIL

.2 0e have already dealt with this "uestion in the 7hapter on 8eview of

Legislation/.

LABOUR ADUDICATION

.2! Labour ad:udication in the 7entral sphere has all along been based on

ad hoc arrangements. 8etired 9igh 7ourt :udges or District :udges are

appointed on the basis of availability with no procedures for select ion

etc. 8etired 9igh 7ourt :udges or :udges often bring with them the

criminal or civil law orientation not suited to labour :urisprudence.

t any point of time, ?HO or more tribunals remain vacant because of

non$availability of :udges or retired 9igh 7ourt :udges. s a result, the

disposal of cases referred to the tribunals gets inordinately delayed.

The number of cases pending can be seen from the table we given on the

next page.

15


The number of Industrial Disputes < pplications handled by the 7EIT$cum$

Labour 7ourts during the year !HHH *s on -H..!HHH+

N$/er of

In0$#ria' Di!$#e

N$/er of

A!!'i"a#ion

S.

NO.

Name of

the CGIT

B/F as on

1 Jan

!"""

Re#e$%e&

&'($n)

1 Jan

!""" to

*"th No%.

!"""

+$s,ose&

&'($n)

1 Jan

!""" to

*"th No%.

!"""

Pen&$n)

as on

*"th O#t

!"""

B/F

as on

1 Jan.

!"""

Re#e$%e&

&'($n)

1 Jan

!""" to

*"th No%.

!"""

+$s,ose&

&'($n)

1 Jan

!""" to

*"th No%.

!"""

Pen&$n)

as on

*"th No%.

!"""

1 Asanso- *" 0 "2 0 31

! Ban)a-o(e 1 4 313 4 0 1" *4

*5 Ca-#'tta 14 1 !" !"3 ** !1 !! *!

6 Chan&$)a(h 1* !! 1 12! *1* ! ! *1*

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3 +han7a& 1 1!42 *!2 4* 13! !3 ! 13 *"

28 +han7a& ! 11" 4! 0 1!3! 2* 0 0 2*

Ja7a-,'( 1!! 14 2! 1*23 3" 113 3 24"

4 9an,'( 2! 114 112 2!2 24 13 *3 4

M'm7a$ 1 14 3 " !"* 22 1

1" M'm7a$ ! !! 11! 1** !1 ! *! 1 4

11: Ne; +e-h$ 1"3 1"4 4" 1"43 *3" 1*! 2 14

1! Ja$,'( 11 2 ! 112 ! * ! *

1* L'#&e(a7a& 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Total 8389 2035 722 9711 3328 1310 835 3803

So'(#e ? Ann'a- Re,o(t !"""0!""1 M$n$st(> of La7o'(

6 ',to A')'st !"""

5 ',to Se,tem7e( !"""

: ',to O#to7e( !"""

66 ',to J'-> !"""

= sta(te& f'n#t$on$n) ;.e.f. O#to7e( !" !"""


.2- Industrial tribunals5 labour courts are also not empowered either to issue

decrees or to in itiate contempt proceedings to enforce their awards. The

only course available under law to secure implementation of

awards5settlements is prosecut ion under section !A of the Industrial

Disputes ct by the o#cers of the 7entral Industrial 8elations Machinery or

the 6tate Labour Departments. s o#cers or establishments, li&e the

7(0D, Defence, Department of Telecom, rchaeological 6urvey of

India or 8ailways, en:oy protection against prosecution under 6ection AC

of the 7riminal (rocedure 7ode, permission of the employing Ministry is

necessary to prosecute them. This permission from the employing

Ministry, under 6ection AC of the 7riminal (rocedure 7ode, is seldom

granted. s a result, a large number of awards relating to 8ailways, 7(0D,

(

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.22 Many witnesses have complained to us that the awards of Labour 7ourts

and Tribunals are not implemented by employers. The delay in

implementation of awards causes lot of hardships to the concerned

wor&men and virtually amounts to a denial of :ustice. The remedy in the

existing law is for the enforcement authorities to launch prosecution u5s!A of the Industrial Dispute ct *ID ct+. This remedy has not proved

e1ective. It consumes time at every step. Moreover the law as it stands only

empowers the courts to impose nes. It does not empower the courts to

ensure the implementation of awards.

.2? In the 7entral sphere itself, the number of unimplemented awards is

approximately !,?HH. These involve approximately !H,HHH wor&ers. Most of

these awards of Labour 7ourts5 Tribunals have granted relief of re$

instatement or regulari%ation from certain specied dates. Many of

these awards lie unimplemented for ve to fteen years or more.

17


.2B 0e nd that non$ implementation of the awards of Labour 7ourts and

Industrial Tribunals has become a ma:or problem that paralyses the

e1ectiveness of the dispute resolution machinery and thwarts the basic

intentions of the ID ct. Many big employers prefer to challenge every

award in the 9igh 7ourt by ling writ petitions. t present, the award

has to be implemented within -H days from the date of publication

*6ection C+. 9owever, the employer les a petition in the 9igh 7ourt only

when the notice of the Labour Department is received. The Labour

Department issues notices only when the aggrieved wor&er les a complaint

of non$implementation of the award, after submitting many re"uests to

the employer for implementation. Thus, it is only after a considerable

period of time that the employer5management les a writ petition so as to

avoid prosecution by the enforcement authorities. In the process the

employer5management obtains a stay order from the 9igh 7ourt, and the

awards remain suspended till the 9igh 7ourt decides the case or vacates

the stay order.

.2C In CH to HO of 0rit (etition cases the employer5management does

not get success, and the award is upheld. >ut the decision of the 9igh 7ourt

comes after three to ve years, and sometimes after seven or eight years.

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.2 The management again ta&es their time, and if the wor&er again ma&es

a demand for the implementation of the award, or if the Labour

department issues a legal notice for the implementation, they again go

on appeal to a larger bench of the 9igh court. 4r if it is not feasible, they

approach the 6upreme 7ourt through special leave petitions for

obtaining further stay and prolonging the case. Gven after losing inthe 6upreme 7ourt, the employer5management does not implement

the award. If the enforcement authorities le a suit for prosecut ion,

the prosecution is challenged in the 9igh 7ourt. In some awards,

petitions are led in the 9igh 7ourt as well as in the 6upreme 7ourt

bifurcating issues to confuse the authorities and tie them up in legal

complications. nother ten or fteen years pass in this way, and the poor

wor&man is &ept waiting for :ustice. The law thus becomes a moc&ery.

18


.2A Most of the awards which employers5management challenge relate to

the regulari%ation, reinstatement, bac& wages, etc. of large numbers of

wor&ers. Many times, awards in respect of individual wor&ers too are

challenged.

.?H fter ten or fteen years when the employer5management loses in

every court, it is often that the concerned wor&er has disappeared from

the scene. 4therwise, the management invo&es sec. A *B+ of the ID ct

and terminates the award in a clandestine and perfunctory manner, even

though this action of the management is not in conformity with the statutory

provision. n award can be terminated under section A*B+ if it satises the

condition that it has been in operation for a period of one year as provided for

in section A*-+. nd certain awards that relate to reinstatement,

regulari%ation or the payment of bac& wages etc. cannot be terminated at

all. 4nly awards that relate to service conditions, promotional policies,

automation etc. or settlements, can be terminated as provided for in 6ection

A*B+.

.? It must be pointed out here that the 9on/ble 6upreme 7ourt had

directed the Eovernment of India to

set up a committee consisting of representatives of the Ministry of

Industry, the >ureau of (ublic Gnterprises and the Ministry of Laws to

monitor disputes between ministries, and between ministries and(6's, to ensure that no litigation went to the 7ourt or a tr ibunal without

the matter being examined and cleared by the 7ommittee for litigation.

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*4rder dated 4ctober AA in 7ivil ppeal @os. !H?$?A of A in the

case of 4@E7 5s 7ollector of 7entral Gxcise+.

.?! The 9on/ble 6upreme 7ourt further directed that every 7ourt and every

tribunal where such a dispute is raised should rst demand a clearance from

the 7ommittee, and, in the absence of the clearance, refuse to ta&efurther proceedings. The intention of the apex court/s order is clearly to

prevent litigation between departments, and agencies of the Eovernment.

.?- >ut it has been seen that (ublic 6ector 'nderta&ings *(6's+ often le

writ petitions against the Labour Ministry, impleading the Labour

6ecretary, the Labour 7ommissioner and the Gnforcement 4#cer as

main respondents. nd they

19


le such cases in 9igh 7ourts and the 6upreme 7ourt without obtaining

clearance from the 7ommittee, and sometimes, from their own Ministries.

(6's involved in such litigation include 7oal India Ltd., Telecommunication

Department, 7(0D, 8ailways, 4@E7, 6IL, 6I, (ublic 6ector >an&s, etc.

.?2 The situation in the state sphere private industrial units is even worse. They often ma&e it a point of prestige. Furthermore, awards with high

nancial implications are hardly ever implemented. Puite often that they fail

to enable wor&ers to receive nancial dues or bac& wages or

compensation in spite of clear orders from the 7ourts.

.?? (oor wor&ers or their unions often nd it di#cult to defend their cases in the

9igh 7ourt or the 6upreme 7ourt, as it costs them huge sums of money.

Many times they approach employers or the Labour 7ommissioner for

partial imple$ mentation of the award. fter losing from all the 7ourts and

feeling pressuri%ed from all corners, the employer pressuri%es the

wor&ers or unions to accept much less than what the award has given

them. For

instance, instead of reinstatement with full bac& wages of ve to ten years

or more, the management often tries to bring pressure on the wor&er to

settle for much less, say HO, as bac& wages and reinstatement without

any service benets. The management may even o1er to settle the case

by paying a lump sum amount, The poor wor&er is thus badgered or

coaxed into accepting much less than what the 7ourts had awarded. 4ne

of the methods employed is to threaten to go on appeal to a 9igher

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7ourt if the employee does not agree to compromise on a lower gure

or pac&et of benets.

.?B 0hen an aggrieved wor&man or union raises a dispute, the matter goes for

7onciliation. 7oncil iat ion ta&es two months to one year. 4n the failure of

conciliation, a report is sent to the Eovernment. The Eovernment ta&es itstime, and often, one or two years elapse before action is ta&en. The case is

then referred for ad:udication to the Labour 7ourt5 Tribunal. The Labour

7ourt5Tribunal submits its award to the Eovernment after two to three years.

>y then, often, six years time has elapsed. Gven so, the matter does not

end,

20


and the employee does not get the redress he had sought six years ago. The

employer does not implement the award. 9e goes on appeal to the 9igh

7ourt or the 6upreme 7ourt. It ta&es another few years for hearings,

ad:ournments and further hearings. The aggrieved wor&er has still to wait for

these processes to end, nursing the hope that the redress he had sought

would arrive. >ut by the time these processes are over, sometimes a decade

or more has passed. The wor&er may have died. 9e might have changed his

employer, and ta&en up employment somewhere else. The industrialestablishment may have closed down. 8ecords may not be traced, and the

wor&er/s "uest for :ustice may end in disillusionment and su1ering.

.?C 0e, therefore, feel that if the existing unethical system of

continuous denial of :ustice is not changed, the wor&ers will lose faith in the

law, in labour administration and in the labour :udiciary. To remedy the

situation it is essential that the award is implemented immediately and the

payment to the wor&er is started on the basis of last salary drawn. This

principle would apply to wor&ers both in the private and in the public sector

organisations. 9owever, for public sector organisations, which want to

prefer appeal against the orders of Labour 7ourt, they should obtain

permission of a 6creening 7ommittee to be set up by the appropriate

Eovernment.

.? If the above recommendation is accepted, it would go a long way in

providing relief to the wor&ers.

UALIFICATIONS FOR PRE- SIDIN* OFFICERS

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.?ATo ensure that there is no dearth of presiding o#cers in labour

courts5tribunals, we recommend that "ualications for appointment of

presiding o#cers be relaxed to enable experienced conciliation o#cers not

below the ran& of Deputy Labour 7ommissioner and 8egional Labour

7ommissioner, with LL> degrees and at least H years/ experience in the

labour department, to be considered for appointment as presiding o#cers. This will help the Ministry to appoint presiding o#cers for all the tribunals

and labour courts, and thereby to expedite the disposal of cases pending

with the tribunals.

.BH 0e also recommend that Labour 7ourts be given powers to

21


issue decrees or initiate contempt proceedings for non$implementation or non$

compliance of awards. In the new dispensation that we have recommended,

there will only be Labour 7ourts *no separate tribunals+.

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS COMMISSION

.B s we have said elsewhere, a 7entral Labour 8elations 7ommission should be

set up for 7entral sphere establishments, and 6tate Labour 8elations

7ommissions should be set up for establishments in the 6tate sphere.

bove the 7entral and 6tate Labour 8elations 7ommissions, there will be the

@ational Labour 8elation 7ommission *@L87+ to hear appeals against the

decisions of the two other 7ommissions. The @ational L87, 7entral L87

and the 6tate L87s will be autonomous and independent. These 7ommissions

will function as appellate tribunals over the Labour 7ourts. They will be

charged with the responsibility of superintendence of the wor& of Labour

7ourts.

CENTRAL LABOUR SER+ICE

.B! 7entral Labour 6ervice *7L6+ was formed in February AC

comprising the o# cers of the 4rganisation of 7hief Labour

7ommissioner *7entral +, Labour 4#cers of the 7entral (ool and

o#cers of the 0elfare 7ommissioners on the basis of the recommendation

of the cadre review committee of Labour 4#cers of the 7entral (ool. The

ob:ective of the merger of these - constituent 6ervices was to provide an

integrated structure to inculcate professionalism and provide better

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promotional avenues to Labour 4#cers. 4riginally, the ob:ect of

recruiting and providing the services of Labour 4# cers56enior Labour

4#cers *now &nown as ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners5

Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners+ to the industrial

establishments of various Ministries5 Departments was to allow these

o#cers to function independently, with a certain amount of neutrality andto enable them to loo& after the welfare of wor&ers in these

establishments without fear or favour.

.B- t present, nine 0elfare 7ommissioners and four ssistant 0elfare

7ommissioners of the 0elfare 4rganisation implement the welfare schemes

of di1erent welfare boards. Though the wor& assigned to

22


ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners5 Deputy Labour 0elfare

7ommissioners varies from establishment to establishment, they are engaged

in an advisory capacity for the implementation of statutory welfare measures

under the Factories ct and non$statutory welfare measures, vi%. ;7M etc., of

the industrial units. s they are not re"uired to deal with personnel matters,

they do not have &nowledge about service conditions, recruitment rules, pay <

allowances, leave, etc. In fact, Factory 0elfare 4#cers 8ules forbid theseo#cers from attending conciliation proceedings or other "uasi$:udicial

proceedings on behalf of the employer. The only wor& they are re"uired to do

is to prepare a monthly welfare report. Much of their time remains unutilised.

The Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners, wherever posted, attend to the

same responsibilities. @o instruction or professional advice is given to them by

the management of the industrial units where they are posted, since they are

not treated as part of the establishment. They learn what they can on their

own.

.B2 The ;ob content of the ssistant Labour 0elfare

7ommissioners and Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners is nowhere

near or comparable to the :ob contents of ssistant Labour

7ommissioner *7+ or 8egional Labour 7ommissioner *7+. There is hardly

any opportunity to develop professional expertise while wor&ing as


7ommissioners. 4ver the years, with poor :ob content and a lot of unused

time, ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners 5 Deputy Labour 0elfare

7ommissioners have not &ept abreast of developments in their elds and

often lac& initiative and drive. Gven experienced ssistant Labour

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7ommissioners *7+ of the 7entral Industrial 8elations Machinery,

after serving a 2 year tenure as ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioner

in industrial establishments, tend to become out of date on developments

in the eld of labour laws and related :udicial pronouncements.

.B? Erouping of ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners5Deputy Labour0elfare 7ommissioners with ssistant Labour 7ommissioners*7+5 8egional

Labour 7ommissioners*7+, who have di1erent &inds of duties and

23


di1erent degrees of responsibility, has not only told upon the e#ciency but

also diluted the independence and impartial character of ssistant Labour

7ommissioners*7+ and 8egional Labour 7ommissioners*7+. fter the

formation of the 7L6, the posts of ssistant Labour 0elfare

7ommissioner and Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioner have become

interchangeable with the posts of ssistant Labour 7ommissioner*7+ and

8egional Labour 7ommissioner*7+ respect ively. ssistant Labour

7ommissioners*7+5 8egional Labour 7ommissioners*7+ are posted as


7ommissioners in Eovt. factories and departments, li&e the 7(0D,

under the same employer against whom they had enforced labour lawsor decided "uasi$:udicial cases. 6imilarly, ssistant Labour 0elfare

7ommissioners5 Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners, employed and

paid by the government factories and departments, when posted as

ssistant Labour 7ommissioners*7+5 8egional Labour

7ommissioners*7+, enforce law, ta&e legal action and hear and decide

cases against the Eeneral Manager of the factory under whom they had

wor&ed. Labour Gnforcement 4#cers, conscious of the fact that, on

promotion, they may be posted as ssistant Labour 0elfare7ommissioners under a Eeneral Manager, can hardly be expected to

prosecute the Eeneral Manager fearlessly, for payment of less than

minimum rates of wages to casual labourers under the Minimum 0ages ct

or for violation of provisions of 7ontract Labour *8egulation < bolition+

ct. This is also contrary to the recommendat ion !H and 7onvention

of the IL4, under which the inspecting sta1 should not have any direct or

indirect interest in the establishment where they are expected to enforce

labour laws.

.BB The functions of the ssistant Labour 7ommissioner*7+ and the 8egional

Labour 7ommissioner*7+ involve conciliation, a highly personalised art

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ac"uired over years of practice, and "uasi $:ud ic ia l functions of

authority under the Minimum 0ages ct, (ayment of Eratuity ct, G"ual

8emuneration ct and Industrial Gmployment *6tanding 4rders+ ct.

.BC s the number of ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners is

24


twice the number of ssistant Labour 7ommissioners*7+ and the number of

Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners is 2 times the number of 8egional

Labour 7ommissioners*7+, each o#cer may, at best, wor& one stint of

2 years as ssistant Labour 7ommissioner*7+, another tenure of two

years either as 8egional Labour 7ommissioner*7+, or Deputy 7hief Labour

7ommissioner*7+. In other words, for every tenure of wor& in the 7entral

Industrial 8elations Machinery, an o#cer has to wor& two or three tenures as

ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioner or Deputy Labour 0elfare

7ommissioner in industrial units. This has resulted in loss of expertise to

the 7entral Industrial 8elations Machinery and conse"uent dearth of

experienced o#cers to train new recruits.

.B 0e see that the system of recruitment and posting of ssistant Labour

0elfare 7ommissioners5 Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners who wor&as 0elfare 4# cers in factories etc. by the Ministry of Labour has outlived

its utility. 'nder the provisions of the Factories ct, it is the statutory

responsibili ty of the employer to appoint 0elfare 4#cers as in the case of

other enactments

related to the activities of factories such as 6afety 4#cers, Fire$ghting

4#cers, and >oiler 6upervisors etc. The appointment of ssistant Labour

0elfare 7ommissioners through the Ministry of Labour has also added to the

problems of o#cers. 8otational transfers do not give them the opportunity todevelop a sense of belonging and commitment to the unit. The 7entral

0or&ing Eroup on Labour dministration of the First @ational 7ommission on

Labour made the following observations in 7hapter I of its 8eport)

Qs the Labour 4#cers of 7entral (ool posted to di1erent

factories5underta&ings are not ta&en a part and parcel of the

establishment and considered rather as outsiders, their utility is

somewhat neutralised. They should form an integral part of themanagement set$up by each employing Ministry having its own

cadre as far as possibleR.

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.BA The dministrative 8eforms 7ommittee recommended that the Labour

4#cers of the 7entral (ool maintained by the Ministry of Labour, in suitable

cases, should be

25


permanently absorbed in the services of public sector underta&ings. labour

administration mechanism can function e1ectively, only if the men in charge

are &nowledgeable, motivated and experienced in the eld of labour

administration. 0e therefore reco$ mmend that the Ministry of Labour

should not depute its o#cers to employers/ establishments. Di1erent

employing Ministries, where ssistant Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners and

Deputy Labour 0elfare 7ommissioners are posted, should be advised to

absorb them in the cadres of the o# cers of the respective 4rganisations.4#cers who are not willing to get absorbed or who cannot be absorbed by

di1erent Ministries, should be withdrawn in phases, and posted in the other

two streams of the 7L6, i.e. 7entral Industrial 8elations Machinery and

the 0elfare 7ommissioners/ 4rganisation. They may also be considered

for deploy$ ment in the 4rganisations of 7(F7, G6I7 and DEGT so that

o#cers of the 7L6 can be groomed to ta&e higher responsibilities in at least

!? O posts of the Ministry of Labour, particularly the I8 < Implementation

Division, and in the 4#ce of the DEL0. This will also promote professionalexpertise and e#ciency in the system.

.CH It is also necessary to improve the &nowledge, s&ills and competence

of the o#cers of the 7L6 to enable them to win the condence of the

employers and wor&men. It is necessary to upgrade the s&ills of labour

ad:udicators to enable them to perceive the changes in their roles as

labour ad:udicators and the impact of their decisions on the national

economy. Induction, training and periodical refresher courses are

necessary to improve the e#ciency and e1ectiveness of o#cers of the

7L6. To improve the status of these o# cers, engaged in concil iation,

ad:udication, etc., there is need for an ll India service, li&e the Indian

Labour ;udicial 6ervice. These o#cers should be given proper sta1,

infrastructural bac&up, and support facilities, li&e o#ce e"uipment, library,

transport and communication. There should be access to information on

all matters concerning industrial relations, li&e industrial statistics,

long$term settlements, retrenchments, dismissals, stri&es and loc&outs and

:udicial pronouncements. database should be built up on all aspects

relating to industrial relations and the o#cers of the 7L6 should have

access to such database through computer connectivity.

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26


.C The "uestion of dealing with the existing posts of ssistant Labour

7ommissioners of the 7entral Labour 6ervice at the 7entral level and its

e"uivalents at 6tate level and other 7entral Eovernment bodies, as part of

the proposed ll India Labour dministrative 6ervice, all needs to be

loo&ed into carefully. 0hile on the sub:ect of creating an ll India Labour

6ervice to substitute the cadres of the 7entral Labour 6ervice. 0e reproduce

our views mentioned at para 2 of 7hapter I on 8eivew of Laws )

QG"ually important in our view is the need for constituting an ll India

Labour dministrative 6ervice. Labour being in the concurrent list of the

7onstitution, the advantages of such a service, which will also enable

exchange of o#cers between the 7entre and the 6tates, are obvious. It

must be recogni%ed that bul& of the labour administration in the 6tates and

union territories relate to implementation and enforcement of labour

laws which are centra lly enacted. Though there may be some 6tate level

amendments to some of these laws, the main provisions of these laws are

common to all 6tates and union territories. 0e are of the view that if all the

o#cials of the

labour department of and above the ran& of Deputy Labour

7ommissioners 5 8egional Labour 7ommissioners are included in theservice and also senior level appointments such as Gxecutive 9eads

of 0elfare Funds, 6ocial security administration and so on there will be

an ade"uate number of posts :ust ifying such a service . Moreover, those

who are in charge of Labour administration need some specic s&ills

and attitudes, and aptitudes which we have made reference. 6ome of

these have to be identied and developed considering all this. 0e

recommend the setting up of such an ll India 6erviceR.

The related "uestion of their inter$ changeability to man posts under the

6tate Labour Departments needs to be loo&ed into. This would necessarily

mean 6tate based cadres of ll India Labour 6ervice to man senior level posts

available at respective state levels and having the necessary components of

7entral Deputation 8eserve, leave reserve, foreign/ service reserve, etc. The

related issues of the level at which the o#cials proposed to constitute the ll

India Labour 6ervice are to be inducted, which has to be necessarily

27


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at 7lass I level on par with other ll India 6ervices, and conse"uently the

issue of dealing with members of 7L6 below the 7lass I level as also the

6ubordinate 6ervices for whom they function as promotional level, also

need to be sorted out. 6imilarly, the feeder services at the state level at 7lass

I level which would function as the promotional base of o#cials for promotion

to the 6enior 7lass I level of the proposed ll India Labour 6ervice, alsoneed to be agreed upon in consultat ion with the 6tate Eovernments. The

7ommission is conscious of the fact that no new ll India 6ervice was

created since the Indian Forest 6ervice has been re$ created in the mid BHs,

and the earlier attempt in the late CHs for creation of ll India Gngineering

and 9ealth < Medicine 6ervices, did not bear fruit. 9owever, in the interest

of uniform standards in administration of labour laws which impact upon the

life and conditions of wor& of the ent ire wor&ing class and its importance

for the maintenance of peaceful industrial relations and to national economy,the 7ommission feels that it would be worthwhile for the Eovernment to

initiate appropriate steps in this regard.

Mention must also be made of the signicant number of Indians who have

migrated to some 0est sian and other countries in search of employment.

4ur attention was drawn to some cases where such wor&ers were deprived of

their rights. 0hile these wor&ers will no doubt conform to the laws of the host

countries, they may still need advice to resolve their cases. 0e, therefore,

recommend that in countries which have si%eable Indian wor&ers/ population,our Gmbassies must have Labour ttaches, drawn from o#cials of the Labour

Departments or the 7L6 and later from the proposed ll India Labour

dministrative 6ervices.

STATE LABOUR ADMINISTRATION

.C! In the preceding paragraphs, we have tal&ed of the structure, role and

the infrastructure of labour administration at the central level. Therole of the labour departments of the 6tates and the 'nion Territories is

almost identical, and so are their problems. 9owever, problems relating

to infrastructure, both in terms of manpower and other resources, seem

more acute in some 6tates. The nature of the wor& handled by the

Labour Departments of 6tates5'nion

28


Territories is much more diverse than what the 7entral Eovernment handles.

0hile the 7entral Eovernment is broadly responsible for (ublic 6ector

'nderta&ings and some large (rivate 6ector 4rganisations, the 6tate5'T

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Eovernments loo& after a vast spectrum of organisations ranging from ve$

star hotels to road$ side dhabas and tea shops, from large automobile

companies to small wor&shops that operate with the assistance of one or two

persons, from multi$unit multinational organisations to a small family concern

functioning from a portion of the residence of the proprietor.

.C- 0e have also seen that almost in all labour departments, there

is a certain percentage of persons who are not from the cadre of the

department but are deputed for varying periods. In the @ational 7apital

Territory of Delhi, the basic Labour Inspectorate is drawn from the common

6ubordinate 6ervices cadre. This does not have salutary e1ect on

professionalisation in the labour departments.

.C2 The problems of the 6tates5'T labour enforcement machinery are the sameas what we have highlighted

in respect of the 7entral Industrial 8elations machinery. 0e hope that the

6tate Eovernments will pay due attention to the professionalisation and

empowerment of the Labour Department because of the crucial role

that it has to play in strengthening the economy.

.C? 0e would also li&e to recommend that the 7entral Eovernment

determine some norms for the laws inspector ratio and the infrastructureof the Labour Departments. 6uch norms should, no doubt, be determined

after due deliberation and after ta&ing into account the International

Labour 6tandards concerning Labour dministration formulated by

the International Labour 4rganisation in AC. 0e append the text of the

IL4/s 7onventions on Labour dministration *AC+ and the related

recommendation at the end of this 7hapter *ppendix II+.

ENFORCEMENT AND CONCI- LIATION MACHINERY

.CB G#ciency and e1ectiveness of inspections and conciliation contribute

greatly to the observance of labour laws. 7omplexity in laws ma&es a very

heavy demand on the poorly sta1ed

29


and poorly e"uipped labour inspection and conciliation services. The

machinery has to be e"uipped ade"uately. There are obv ious

limitations on increasing sta1. The concern should, therefore, be on

improving the e#ciency of the existing sta1 and infrastructure, without

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depending on increasing the si%e of the machinery. For this purpose, the

enforcement and conci liat ion machinery in the 7entral and 6tate

Eovernments need to be e"uipped with suitable o#ce accommodation,

facilities for transport and communication, li&e fax machines,

telephones with 6TD facilit ies and computers in the o#ces of the 7entral

and 6tate Labour departments. ll o#ces of the 7I8M and the 6tateIndustrial 8elations Machinery should have the benet of computeri%ation.

8egional Labour 7ommissioners*7+ must have telephones in their

residences and o#ces, serviceable and ade"uate number of vehicles, and

well$e"uipped libraries in regional and %onal o#ces etc. ll this is necessary

so that the enforcement and conciliation machinery can &eep abreast

of latest case law.

.CC ll inspecting o#cers charged with the responsibil ity of theenforcement of multiple enactments should be of Eroup / status. Their

&nowledge and experience should be updated through short$term and long$

term training and refresher courses.

EFFECTI+E AND INNO+ATI+E ,AYS OF INSPECTION

.C part from the provision of material and human resource inputs and

rationalisation and simplication of laws, it is necessary to evolve a rationalsystem of identifying establishments that need to be inspected. The

Labour Gnforcement Machinery receives a number of returns from

employing units. These returns provide su#cient information on whether

minimum wages are paid and whether reasonable terms and conditions of

employment and safety exist in the units. Labour Gnforcement 4# cers*7+

may draw up their programme of selective inspections &eeping in view

these functions. 8eturns with self$certication can be treated as self$

inspection report from the establishments. Labour Gnforcement4#cers*7+ are of course free to chec& the correctness of the information

whenever they have doubt or on the basis of random sampling or

complaints. 7onsidering the

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limitations of the inspection machinery and the fact that the wor&ers

engaged in organised industries do have means of collective bargaining,routine inspections in the organised industries may be reduced, except

where conditions of safety are concerned. 9owever, routine

inspections are necessary in the unorganised sector to protect the

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interests of the wor&men. To ma&e the enforcement machinery accoun$

table, there should be at least HO chec& of inspections by superior

o#cers at all levels.

STATUS OF THE CONCILIATION OFFICER

.CA To ma&e conciliation e1ective, it is necessary to improve the status and

competence and calibre of conciliation o#cers through proper

recruitment, training and placement. Labour and ;udicial 6ervice can be

formed with the o#cers of the 7entral Labour 6ervice and future

recruitment may be made through the '(67 by holding a competitive

examination, followed by two years/ probation in the departments of the

Labour Ministry, tribunals, 7I8M, employment wings of the DEGT, G6I7,

G(F4, etc., to develop professional expertise and

high standards of e#ciency necessary to render e1ective conciliation and

ad:udication services.

SOCIAL SECURITY BOARD

.H s per the existing system, Gmployees 6tate Insurance 7orporation

enforces the G6I ct and provides medical facilities, sic&ness benets and

temporary and permanent disablement benets etc. with periodical

contributions from both the employers and the employees. 6imilarly, the

G(F ct is enforced by 7(F7 with the (F contribution of employers and

employees. 0or&men/s compensation is paid to wor&men by the 0or&men/s

7ompensation 7ommissioner, after realising the money from the

employers. The employer pays gratuity to the wor&men at the time of

termination of service. In case of non$payment, the aggrieved wor&ers may

approach the 7ontrolling uthority for direction to the employer for

payment of gratuity. 'nli&e the (F and G6I, wor&ers do not have to paycontributions for payment of gratuity. s a result, at the time of closing

down of the establishment, in many cases, wor&men do not get payment of

gratuity in time. 0e have already

31


recommended that wor&ers should be supplied with a social security card to

enable them to get social security benets wherever they are in the country.

POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

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. For e1ective labour administration, there should be legislative bac&up

for the simplication of laws and procedures through uniform denitions

of appropriate government/, wor&men/, employer/, etc., enabling

provisions to cover all employments in the unorganised sector under the

Minimum 0ages ct, speedy recovery of the dues payable to wor&ers,

empowerment of the appropriate government to exempt from theprovisions of the laws in deserving cases, ensuring that the employment

of contract labour is restricted for areas beyond those of core

competence, deterrent punishment to ma&e the cost of v iolat ion

dearer than the cost of implementation, clubbing of the existing set of

labour laws into ve or more groups pertaining to *i+ industrial relations, *ii +

wages, *ii i+ social security, *iv+ safety and *v+ welfare and wor&ing

conditions etc., and reduction in the number of registers to

be maintained and returns to be submitted.

.! The changes brought about by globalisation, liberalisation and the mar&et

driven economy, re"uire that Indian industry should be competitive, both in

"uality and cost. In order to be competitive, voluntary resolution of disputes

should be encouraged over the legalistic approach of settlement of disputes

through ad:udication. Labour administration shou ld encourage

information$sharing, better human resource practices, the emergence of

a participative wor&force, relationship and trust building, wor&place

cooperation between the employers and the wor&ers and other

cooperative practices. 0or&men should ta&e more and more decisions at

the wor&place. The focus should be on bipartite consultation at enterprise

level and voluntary arbitration rather than resolution of disputes by

ad:udication.

.- There should be a legislative framewor& for voluntary di spute

settlement. The rst and foremost re"uirement should be to place a

system of recognition of negotiating agency on the statute. It is di#cult for

the employer to deal separately

32


with multiple unions having di1erent ideologies. 4nce there is a system of

recognition of a negotiating agency, the employer can negotiate with the

recognised negotiating agent or the negotiating council. The responsibility of

conducting verication of trade union membership for recognition of trade

unions and the formation of a negotiating council should be vested on the

7entral Labour 8elations 7ommission in the case of the 7entral sphere and the

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6tate Labour 8elations 7ommissions in the case of the 6tate sphere

establishments. The 0or&s 7ommittee to be constituted under 6ection - of the

Industrial Disputes ct *ID+ should be substituted by an Industrial 8elations

7ommittee to promote in$house dispute settlement and resolve all the

di1erences at the unit level as far as practicable.

.2 dhocism should end in the appointment of presiding o#cers of the

industrial tribunals. There should be regular a cadre of labour ad:udicators

drawn from experienced :udges and conciliators to improve the "uality of

ad:udication as well as to improve prospects of their professional

advancement. 0e have already said earlier that we visuali%e only labour

courts not tribunals as

di1erent from courts. These 7ourts should wor& under the

superintendence of the 7entral L87 or the 6tate L87 respectively. L87sshould also function as appel late tribunal in respect of decisions given by

the labour courts to bring uniformity. t present, there is no appellate

:ur isdiction against the decisions of the tribunal. 9owever, the aggrieved

parties ta&e recourse to the writ :urisdiction under rticle !!B in di1erent

9igh 7ourts. There is lac& of uniformity in the decisions of the di1erent 9igh

7ourts. The @ational L87 which should function as the appel late

author ity against the decision of the 7entral and 6tate L87s, as

national appellate tribunal, may bring uniformity speed and consistency

in the decision ma&ing process on appeal.

INDIAN LABOUR CONFERENCE

.? The 7ommission has given considerable thought to the role that the Indian

Labour 7onference *IL7+ can, and should play, and the role that it is playing

today. The 7onference came into being in A2H. 0e have had the benet of

about B! years of experience now, and have gathered enough experienceto assess the

33


shortcomings and the utility of the institution. @either the 6tate Eovernments

nor the organisations of employers and employees are satised with the way

the 7onference has wor&ed.

.B ccording to our 7onstitution, Labour is a concurrent sub:ect. There are

innumerable industrial agricultural and service enterprises in the country. The

states have di1erent levels of organi%ation of wor&ers and

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entrepreneurs. There are problems that are special to some states. There

are di1erences in priorities in the problems that demand attention.

There are also problems and goals that are common to all states. In such

circumstances, policies can be evolved and some degree of uniformity in

directions and programmes achieved, only through fre"uent and meaningful

consultations at high level. The IL7 must provide such a forum forconsultations. Its sessions should not become an annual ritual that contents

itself with platitudes, and declarations. It should be an e1ective forum for

review, consultation and formulation or evolution of perspectives and

policies. This is all the more necessary because it is the only high$level

tripartite forum that we have.

.C The 7onference has to be as representative as possible. It should therefore,

have representation from the organisations of employers and employees,

and the Eovernments at the 7entre, the states and 'nion territories. 'p tonow, representation of wor&ers has been on the basis of the 7entral Trade

'nion Federations in the organi%ed sector. 6ome means must be found to

include representatives from the unorganised sector and from 7entral

organisations that are not a#liated to the 7entral Trade 'nion Federations.

There is no reason to hold that wor&ers in the unorganised sector need

not be represented at such a forum. @or is there any insurmountable

di#culty.

. 0e have studied the proposals that the Draft Indian Labour 7ode,

prepared by the @ational Labour Law ssociation, has made on

strengthening the IL7. 0e are in general agreement with the proposals in

the 7ode. 0e agree that the 7onference can be used as a sounding board

for proposals of legislation. 0e also agree that the Eovernment can benet

immensely by the advice that it may receive form the conference both in

honing and rening proposals and in maximi%ing support form all

34


concerned sections. >ut to begin with, we may not prescribe that every

proposal the Eovernment wants to ma&e should rst be discussed and

approved by the 7onference. This may involve incursions into the rights of

other statutory bodies or institutions that are charged with the responsibility

for immediate action. 9owever, there can be no doubt that where measures

can be or have to be anticipated or visuali%ed in a long range perspective, the

way of prior consultation is possible and highly desirable.

.A 0e agree that the 7onference should)

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a+ 8eview the labour situation in the countryN

b+ 7onsider the 7onventions and 8ecommendation of the Internat ional

Labour organisation for adoptionN

c+ 7onsider the legislative proposals of the 7entral Eovernment that are

referred to it, before or after being moved in (arliament. 0e believe that it will

be advantageous to elicit the views of the IL7 on laws that are to be

introduced in (arliament.

Gxcept in emergency situations, we would therefore recommend prior

consultation with the IL7N

d+ (rovide a forum for consultation and hear ing of complaints

regarding violation of the rights of labourN

e+ 8eview the implementation of the conventions and

recommendations of the International Labour

4rganisation, Directive (rinciples of the 7onstitution concerning

labour and the provisions of labour lawsN

f+ 8eview the implementation of the programmes drawn up by the

7entral Eovernment for the benet of labourN

g+ 7oordinate the conclusions and recommendations of the 6tanding

Labour 7ommitteeN

h+ 8eview the implementation of its own recommendationsN

i+ dopt such resolutions and ma&e such recommendations as it may

deem necessaryN and

:+ Do such other things as may be decided in the 7onference itselfN

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.AH 0e also agree that the 6tanding Labour 7ommittee should prepare the

agenda of the 7onference, that there should be a Director Eeneral of the

Indian Labour 7onferenceN and that the functions of the Director$ Eeneral

should include)

a+ collection and distr ibution of information relating to conditions of wor& and

life of labourN

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b+ examination of the sub:ects which are proposed to be brought before

the 6tanding 7ommittee and the 7onferenceN

c+ conduct of such special investigations as may be ordered by the

6tanding 7ommittee and the 7onferenceN

d+ preparation of documents on the various items of the agenda for the

meeting of the 6tanding 7ommittee and the 7onference and sending

them to participate two wee&s in advanceN

e+ preparation of the proceedings of the 7onference and the meetings of

the 6tanding 7ommittee and issues relating to themN

f+ editing and issuing publications in Gnglish, 9indi and regional

languages, dealing with problems of labourN

.A 0e agree too that the IL7 should set up tri$partite 6tanding 7ommittees

to consider and review problems, legislation and implementation into

main areas li&e)

*a+ employment b+ labour relations c+ safety and health d+ living condition of

labour e+ technological developments and their e1ects on labour and

industry.

.A! 0e also support the suggestion that tripartite @ational and 6tate level

7ouncils of employment should be set up to monitor and plan problems

related to employment li&e)

a+ the development and adoption of an employment policy designed

to promote full productive and freely chosen employmentN

b+ co$ordination between employment policy and the overall

economic and social policy and development programmesN

c+ assessment of the incidence of unemployment and under

employment and the measures

36


that may be ta&en to provide relief to the unemployed and the under

employedN

d+ promotion of employment overseasN

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e+ development of short$term employment programmesN

f+ Gmployment Mar&et nalysis and manpower planningN

g+ (revention of discrimination in employmentN

h+ Monitoring the status of women wor&ersN

i+ 8elated matters.

COMMITTEESBOARDS UNDER THE MINISTRY OF LABOUR

.A- There are 2 Tripartite 7ommittees5>oards under the 7entral Ministry of

Labour. These committees are mainly advisory or consultative bodies that

the Eovernment consults in relation to the implementation5 enforcement of

di1erent labour laws and policy formulation. few of these committees are

non$statutory, li&e the Industrial Tripartite 7ommittees on various industries

li&e sugar, cotton, textile, :ute, engineering, chemical,

road transport etc. and safety committees, the governing body of the

7entral >oard of 0or&ers/ Gducation etc. The 7ommittees constituted

under specic labour laws have special roles, albeit, advisory and

therefore, re"uire a certain degree of expertise. The non$ statutory

committees examine, and deliberate on a variety of issues. These

committees promote tripartism and democratic functioning in labour

administration. lthough, the Labour Ministry has not conducted studies to

examine the e# cacy of these committees, "uite a few witnesses have

expressed their dissatisfaction with the functioning of these

committees. 6ome of the main committees are listed in the table that we

append.

.A2 The members of most of these committees are nominated from

employers/ organisations, trade unions, academicians and otherinterest groups without much emphasis on or evaluation of the "uality

of the contribution that is expected. 6ometimes, the Minister chooses

them. 6ometimes they are chosen by the 6ecretary or other o#cers. There

is no xed criterion for their selection and nomination.

37


The meetings of these committees are held as and when the Ministry

considers it necessary or when some members mount pressure. There is no

xed periodicity. These committees also constitute sub$committees. The

agenda of the meetings of these committees are prepared by o#cers. ery

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often, members come to attend these meetings without ade"uate preparation.

This a1ects the "uality of deliberations in such meetings, and sometimes the

meetings are reduced to rituals. In many meetings, divergent views are

expressed on small points, and discussions get stuc&.

.A? The meetings of these committees are held at various places, and a lot of expenditure is incurred on travel and arrangements. lot of logistical

support and secretarial assistance have to be made available for

facilitating the meetings of these committees.

.AB In the 6tate sphere too, there is the practice of setting up of many

committees and sub$committees. In most of the states, the number of

committees is below twenty.

.AC The 7ommission feels that the Labour Ministry should scrutini%e the

necessity, utility and e#ciency of these 7ommittees rigorously. There is

no doubt that 7ommittees enable access to a wide range of views from

interested or a1ected groups, and provide a channel for democratic

interaction and consultation. >ut 7ommittees should have specic areas

of responsibility or expertise for consultation. Their meetings should be

on specic agenda. Discussions should not be a formality, but should lead to

the crystalli%ation of views or advice. Members should be chosen for theirexpertise, experience and5or representative capacity. They should not be

sinecure committees, and become the cause of avoidable expenditure

from the exche"uer.

SAFETY

.A 6afety, in industria l and agricultural operations, is a necessity not only

for the wor&er and the enterprise, but also for society itself. 4ccupationalha%ards and dangers to health and accidents a1ect all. This means that

conditions in an enterprise or industrial act ivi ty must be conducive to the

protection of human life and limb. If the wor& place is not safe, clean and

congenia l, the wor&force will tend to be alienated

38


from it, and such alienation, as opposed to involvement, physical,emotional and psychological, will adversely a1ect industrial production,

productivity and growth.

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*:+ The Dangerous Machines *8egulation+ ct, A-

*&+ The tomic Gnergy ct, AB!

*l+ >uilding and other 7onstruction 0or&ers *8egulation of Gmployment

and 7ondition of 6ervices+ ct, AAB

*m+ Fatal ccidents ct, ?

*n+ Doc& 0or&ers *6afety, 9ealth and 0elfare+ ct, AB

*o+ 6hops < Gstablishment cts of various 6tates

*p+ (lantations Labour ct, A?

*"+ Mines ct, A?!

6ome of these cts have a slew of rules, which are more exhaustive than the

cts.

.H In spite of so many laws, for some strange reason, we tend to ta&e

safety lightly at home and outside. Gven when we observe laws, we often

do so to avoid getting into trouble with the law, not because we feel that

observing the laws of safety is a duty we owe to others and ourselves

around us. It is perhaps this attitude, which was responsible for the

holocaust at >hopal in the night of December !5-, A2.

.H! >hopal, the capital of Madhya (radesh had a population of

approximately ,HH,HHH at the time of the accident. The 'nion 7arbide plant

was rst built on the outs&irts of the city itself. 6oon, it was surrounded by

shantytowns. These habitations grew up in violation of all municipal laws

and the Eovernment did not realise the dangers of habitation so near a

ha%ardous industry, and hence, did not ta&e timely action, including

precautionary steps, to remedy the situation.

.H- Most of the evidence available indicates that the initial

reaction was caused by lea&age of water into the Methyl Isocynate *MI7+

tan& which led to increase in temperature, the transformation of stored

li"uid MI7 into vapour, the increase in the pressure of tan& number BH

to nearly ?H psi, the opening of the rupture dis& and the safety valve

leading to the vent pipe, and nally the escape of the gas though the pipes

and then into the atmosphere through the vent. The "uestion of how the

water entered the tan& has been a matter of speculation, some ascribing it

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only when the moc& trial ta&es place, and they prove the e#cacy of

systems.

.! The power conferred by section C$, to prohibit employment


where there is serious ha%ard, has been used by the Factory Inspectorate

on few occasions. 0hat is comforting to &now is that fortunately, up to

now, there have been no occasions on which the Inspector of Factories

failed to exercise the power that he should have used.

.- The enhancement of penalties under the ct has had a mixed e1ect.

0hilst earlier, persons who were accused of violations of the provisions of

the Factories ct would go to the 7ourt, plead guilty and pay nes, the

tendency now is to contest cases because penalties have become

higher. This implies that today, the "uality of evidence presented by the

Inspector of Factory has to be much stronger than before, and when it is not

so, the 7ourts tend to ac"uit the accused. 6imilarly, since the "uantum of

penalty is higher, and persons contest cases, the Inspector of Factory has

now to spend more time in the 7ourts, and as a conse"uence, he has less

time to spend in the eld for inspections.

.2 The Factories ct, in the present form, has drawn from the

international experience on safety

management. ll these amendments graphically show that

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