JOMON SEBASTIAN Vs. ASSISTANT LABOUR OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Since common questions arise for consideration in these Writ Petitions, they are disposed of by this Common Judgment. The status of the parties and the documents produced will be as obtaining in W.P.(C) No.13978 of 2023, unless specifically mentioned.

(2.) The Petitioners in these Writ Petitions are headload workers employed in shops located at Agricultural Urban Wholesale Market, Maradu (for short, 'Wholesale Market'). The Wholesale Market was established pursuant to an agreement entered into by the European Economic Communities (E.E.C) and the Republic of India on 30/3/1989, aimed at establishing agricultural markets in Kerala with grant from E.E.C. The Wholesale Market is administered by Urban Wholesale Market Authority constituted by the Government of Kerala and the District Collector, Ernakulam is the Chairman of the Authority. The stalls in the Wholesale Market were allocated to traders on tender cum auction basis. There are 137 stalls and several traders in the Wholesale Market. The 1st Respondent, the Assistant Labour Officer, is the registering authority of Headload Workers under the Kerala Headload Workers Rules, 1981 (for short, 'the Rules') and the 9th Respondent District Labour Officer is the Appellate Authority. Respondents 2 to 4 are authorities under the Kerala Headload Workers' Welfare Fund Board. The 5th Respondent is an association of traders and Respondents 6 to 8 are traders, in the Wholesale Market. The additional 10th Respondent is the pool leader of Pool No.10, Nettoor area, Maradu Municipality, who got himself impleaded in the Writ Petitions.

(3.) The Petitioners state that they are employed as headload Workers by the Traders in their respective stalls in the Wholesale Market. As per G.O (Rt.) No.1249/2003/LBR issued under Sec. 5 of the Kerala Loading and Unloading (Regulation of Wages and Restriction of Unlawful Practices) Act, 2002 (since repealed by Kerala Headload Workers (Amendment) Act, 2008), the traders in the market were exempted from the obligation to provide work to unattached registered Headload Workers. Sec. 5 of the repealed Act, 2002 provides as follows: