UNITED INDIA INSURANCE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION Vs. CHAIRMAN CUM MANAGING DIRECTOR UNITED INDIA INSURANCE CO LIMITED CHENNAI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE writ petitions have been filed by four different Insurance Companies officers' Association seeking a writ of mandamus forbearing the respondents from insisting Clause 2. 2 and 2. 3 of the Terms and Conditions given as Annexure A to ' Check off Exercise 2009' and also from declining to deduct the subscription of the members of the respective petitioner association from the salary and remit the same into the account of the respective petitioner association as it has been done from the year 2004 onwards while proceeding with the 'check off exercise 2009'.

(2.) SINCE the issue involved in all the writ petition is one and the same, they are disposed of by means of this common order.

(3.) THE common averments in all the writ petitions are as follows: (i) The respective associations are registered under the trade Unions Act, 1926 and governed by their own rules and bye-laws. The employees working in the respective insurance companies are the members of the respective associations. In an effort to discourage mushroom growth of unions without any reasonable strength, the need for implementing the 'check off system' was stressed. Therefore, the National Confederation of General Insurance officer's association, which is the parent body of all the four non-life public sector insurance companies filed W. P. No. 6580 of 1999 seeking a writ of mandamus to introduce the check off system. This Court, while disposing of the writ petition on 29. 08. 2003, directed the management of all the four non-life public sector insurance companies, the respondents herein to implement the check off system within a period of six months from the date of the order. Thereafter, the respective respondent companies implemented the check off system in the year 2004 only for a period of two years. Again, it was implemented for a further period of two years. While the things stood so, the respective respondent companies issued the impugned notices introducing Clauses 2. 2 and 2. 3 to the terms and Conditions for Check-Off Exercise 2009 which are the subject matter in these writ petitions. (ii) The impugned terms and conditions introduced in annexure A to the Check-Off Exercise-2000 are extracted hereunder for easy reference: