VASANTHA CARBIDE Vs. PRESIDING OFFICER LABOUR COURT, KARAIKAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenging the award of the Labour Court in and by which the lay-off compensation sought for by the respondents/workmen herein stood affirmatively considered, the management has come forward with the present writ petition.

(2.) The facts in the present case fall within a very narrow compass. The dispute was raised by the workmen by alleging that they are the employees under the petitioner and due to disconnection of electrical supply to the petitioner for want of payment of dues, the petitioner closed the industry on 9/9/2002 without following the provisions of 20-M, 25-N and 25-O of the Industrial Disputes Act (for short 'the Act'). Aggrieved by the sudden closure, the workmen approached the conciliation officer u/s 25-M (1) of the Act and as the petitioner countered the said petition by alleging that the workmen absented themselves from work resulting in heavy loss to the petitioner and inspite of calling upon the workmen to attend work, as they did not attend the work, the company was closed and, therefore, there was no lay-off as alleged by the workmen. Since the efforts for conciliation went in vain, the conciliation officer submitted his report upon which a reference was made to the Labour Court in I.D. No.1/2007.

(3.) Before the Tribunal, the workmen examined two witnesses, as P.W.s 1 and 2 and marked Exs.P-1 to P-7. On the side of the petitioner/management, three witnesses, viz., R.W.s 1 to 3 were examined and Exs.R-1 to R-8 were marked. On behalf of the Court, Exs.X-1 to X-4 were marked. On the basis of the oral and documentary evidence, the Labour Court held that the workmen have been denied work without notice being served on them and, therefore, the workmen are entitled for lay-off compensation as a matter of right and quantified the lay-off compensation at 50% of the total basic wages and dearness allowance receivable by the workmen and an award in the above terms was passed. Aggrieved with the said award, the present writ petition has been filed by the petitioner.