MYSORE STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION BANGALORE MYSORE STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION BANGALORE Vs. S K ATHANI:THE PRESIDING OFFICER LABOUR COURT HUBLI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ALL these appeals raise a common question of law and are being disposed of by a common judgment.

(2.) THE employees of the Mysore State Road Transport Corporation are divisible into three classes: (1) the employees of the erstwhile Road Transport Department of the State of Mysore (hereinafter called the Mysore employees) (2) the employees of the Bombay Road Transport Corporation who were working within such districts of the State of Bombay as were integrated with the State of Mysore (hereinafter called the Bombay employees), and (3) the employees of the Road Transport Department of Hyderabad working in such areas as were integrated with the State of Mysore (hereinafter called the Hyderabad employees). THE employer and the employees concluded an agreement on January 10, 1958 in respect of certain terms and conditions of service. THE agreement was made operative from April 1, 1957. Clause 5 of the agreement dealt with the dearness allowance payable to the employees. THE dearness allowance was fixed on a graduated scale. It appears that the Bombay and Hyderabad employees were getting a higher dearness allowance which was an accident of the reorganisation of States. Accordingly proviso (a) to cl. 5 provided that they would be entitled to continue to draw dearness allowance at the rates which were applicable to them on November 1, 1956 and January 1, 1957 respectively. THE agreement was to remain effective till March 31, 1960. On February 10, 1962 there was another agreement between the two parties. It was made effective from April 4, 1960 and was to continue until March 31 1965. Clause 4 dealt with dearness allowance. THE allowance was increased by Rs. 5/- in respect of all the employees except those who were getting pay between Rs. 301 and Rs. 500 per month. Proviso (a) to cl. 4 was similar to proviso (a) to cl. 5. of the earlier agreement. A third agreement was concluded on March 20, 1965. This agreement came into force on April 1, 1965. Clause 15 provided for dearness allowance payable from January 1, 1965. THE marginal note to cl. 16 (1) is 'revision of pay scales'. THE parties construed the first part of this clause differently and hence the litigation culminating in these appeals. THE text of the clause will be set out later after we have noticed certain orders issued by the employer between 1960 and 1964.

(3.) SUB-clause (ii) (a) of CI. 16 deals with interim relief. It reads: