COSMOPOLITAN CLUB Vs. DISTRICT EMPLOYMENT OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is directed against the order of Srinivasan, J,, dismissing the appellant's writ petition No. 459 of 1963. The District Employment Officer, Madras, who is the respondent herein, sent a communication on 23-3-1963 calling upon the appellant to furnish particulars of the number of persons employed by the appellant, treating the appeallant as an establishment within the meaning of the employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959. The appellant called into question the jurisdiction of the respondent to issue the proceedings dated 23-3-1963. The appellant is the Cosmopolitan Club, Madras. That club is intended to serve its members only, and no person other than a member of the said club is entitled to participate in the amenities provided by that club. The main objects of the club are (a) to provide accommodation for its members, (b) to promote social intercourse among its members, and (c) to provide physical and intellectual recreation for its members. The club being only a. members' club, is not run with any profit motive. The conduct of the club is not in the nature of a commercial undertaking. Consequently, the appellant contended that it is not an establishment within the meaning of the definition contained in Section 2, Clause (e) of the Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959 (which will be hereinafter referred to as the Act ). The learned Judge rejected the contention of the appellant holding that the presence or absence of a profit motive in the carrying on of a business is wholly immaterial in construing the definition of "establishment" in the Act, and that the appellant is an establishment within the meaning of the Act and liable to furnish the particulars called for by the respondent. Consequently, the learned Judge dismissed the writ petition, and against the order of dismissal, this appeal has been filed.

(2.) THE preamble to the Act recites that it is an Act to provide for the compulsory notification of vacancies to employment exchanges. Section 2, Clause (e) of the Act defines "establishment" to mean--

(3.) SUB-SECTION (1) of Section 7 of the Act prescribes that if the employer fails to notify to the employment exchanges concerned any vacancy in contravention of Sub-section (1) or Sub-section (2) of Section 4, he shall be punishable for (the first offence with fine upto Us. 500 and for every subsequent offence with fine upto Rs. 1,000. Subsection (2) of Section 7 of the Act provides that if any person required to furnish any information or return refuses or neglects to furnish the same or furnishes information which he knows to be false, or refuses to answer, or gives a false answer to, any question necessary for obtaining any information required to be furnished under Section 5, or impedes the right of access to relevant records or documents or the right of entry conferred by Section 6, he shall be punishable with fine. The only remaining Sections in the Act are Sections 8, 9 and 10, which are not relevant for the present purpose. If we consider the scheme of the Act in the light of the statement of objects and reasons, it would become clear that the main purpose of the Act is to provide an effective machinery by which the authorities may gather relevant, statistics for the purpose of assessing the volume and pattern of employment in the Indian employment market, on the basis of which the Government may frame its vocational training programme and give advice to unemployed persons about the kind and number of jobs that are vacant and give advice to employers about the employment characteristics and conditions. It is but proper that a welfare State should be constantly watching and assessing the employment potential in various categories of employment and counsel unemployed persons about the needs of employers and counsel the employers about the availability of different categories of labour. In order to achieve this objective, it is necessary for the Government to have a total picture of the vacancies that have occurred or are about to occur in the different establishments in the country, whether such vacancies arise in any industry, trade or business or occupation or in any non-commercial office. Under Section 4, Sub-sections (1) and (2), an obligation is imposed upon every employer in every establishment in the public sector and every notified employer in every establishment in a private sector to notify vacancies to the Employment Exchanges concerned. But Sub-section (4) of Section 4 makes it clear that this obligation to notify the vacancy does not carry with it any corresponding obligation to recruit any person through the Employment Exchange for filling up the vacancy.