G JAYAPRAKASH Vs. GOVT OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ appeal is filed challenging the judgment of the learned Single Judge in OP No. 13451/1996 wherein the learned Single Judge upheld Exts. P3 and P5 orders of the original and appellate authorities under the Kerala Headload Workers Act, whereby the rights of respondents 6 and 7 Unions to claim 'attimari work' in the Kollam District Depot of the Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation was upheld. The appellants are the petitioners who are some of the regular workers of the Corporation as also office bearers of the Union of the regular workers. The brief facts necessary for the disposal of the writ appeal are as follows.

(2.) The Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation (for short 'the Corporation') constructed a new godown in its Kollam District Depot at cantonment area, wherein there were already one Maveli store, four tanks for palmoline collection and one godown, which started functioning on 20/04/1996. Before the construction of the new godown, the depot was functioning as a receiving centre for food articles for sale during festival seasons like Onam etc. When the new godown was constructed, the provision articles stocked at the Kikikolloor godown and the levy sugar stocked in the port godown of the State Warehousing Corporation were shifted to the new godown. The Corporation has its own employees for doing the loading and unloading work. These headload workers are duly registered under the Act and Rules and have been regularly doing the loading and unloading work of the depot from the year 1985. In 1991, various trade unions including respondents 6 and 7 raised disputes claiming work in the depot which ended in Ext. P1 settlement as per which members of respondents 6 and 7 were also allotted headload work in certain proportions, which arrangement has been working out successfully ever since Ext. P1 agreement. When the new godown started functioning, the headload workers of the area claimed stacking charges, which is popularly known as 'Attimari' wages. As we understand it the process of 'atti' is to stack the goods which are brought from the godown and kept near the vehicle which is to carry the same, on to the vehicle and the process of 'mari' is to stack the goods brought in a vehicle on the ground, from where it has to be further carried into the godown. The regular headload workers of the Corporation opposed the practice of giving 'attimari' work to the unattached headload workers of the area. This led to a dispute which was adjudicated by the District Labour Officer, Kollam and passed an order wherein he held that there were a set of workers in the area who were entitled to be engaged exclusively for 'atti' and 'mari' and they have a right to do the said work at the Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation, Kollam depot in accordance with the existing convention within the Kollam municipal area to the exclusion of other regular workers of the Corporation. The order passed by the District Labour Officer under S.21(4) of the Kerala Headload Workers Act is Ext. P3. The appeal filed by the appellant herein before the Regional Joint Labour Commissioner was dismissed by Ext. P5 order. Exts. P3 and P5 orders were challenged by the regular headload workers of the Kerala Civil Supplies Corporation, Kollam depot in the above said original petition, which was dismissed by the learned Single Judge on the ground that the authorities, after conducting an enquiry, found that members of respondents 6 and 7 Unions were doing the 'attimari work' continuously and that they are registered workers under the Headload Workers Act, which finding is a concurrent finding of fact by two authorities and there is no ground to interfere with the same under the discretionary jurisdiction of this Court under Art.226 of the Constitution of India. The said decision is under challenge in this writ appeal.

(3.) We heard counsel on both sides.