KEC INTERNATIONAL LIMITED Vs. KAMANI EMPLOYEES UNION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) RULE in all petitions. Respondents waive service. By consent heard forthwith. Writ Petition No. 1761 of 1997 is preferred by the company against the order dated 25th September, 1997 passed by the Industrial Court, Mumbai. The company has been restrained temporarily to act on the V. R. S. application or to refuse to allot work and to pay wages to enlisted workers till further orders with a further direction that the 55 (fifty-five) enlisted employees be allowed to work and be paid wages subject to deposit of their cheques with the respondent company. Writ Petition No. 1917 of 1997 has been preferred by the Union claiming to represent the workers employed by the company, being the only trade union of employees of the petitioner company. The reliefs in the petition amongst others are to restrain the company from acting on the V. R. S. announced by notice dated 8th August, 1997; restrain the company from selling, disposing or in any manner alienating the plant, machinery, raw material and finished products from the company premises at Kurla without the permission of the Court; restraining the respondent company from refusing work and wages to the employees who have applied for withdrawal of V. R. S. application and not to abolish the posts of workmen whose resignations are accepted and to keep the posts vacant and some other prayers.

(2.) THE facts giving rise to the complaint and the petitions are as under: the company introduced what is known as "voluntary Retirement Scheme". At the time of introduction of the Scheme there were altogether 690 workmen, out of whom 645 opted for the V. R. S. by making applications between 29-8-1997 and 31-8-1997. According to the company from amongst these 645 workmen, 542 applications were received after 14th August, 1997. The company pursuant to the offers made by the workmen, paid the workers their dues under the Scheme, including Provident Fund, Gratuity, Leave Encashment, etc. , by cheques dated 31st August, 1997. Workmen, who had received and accepted cheques between 28th August, 1997 and 31st August, 1997, were to be relieved by 31st August, 1997 but the benefits and other dues were to be paid by 3rd September, 1997. On and from 1st September, 1997, 92 (102) workmen informed the company by identical applications that they wished to withdraw their applications opting for V. R. S. , as they were made under misunderstanding and without looking into all the consequences. Out of these 102 workmen, 10 workmen again approached the company to issue, them fresh cheques as they had deposited the cheques issued with the Union, which had refused to return the cheques.

(3.) THE petition by the Union also challenges the order dated 25th September, 1997 to the extent that the V. R. S. Scheme introduced by the company is in violation of provisions of section 9-A of the Industrial Disputes Act read with Items 10 and 11 of Schedule IV of the said Act. It is contended that no notice as contemplated under section 9-A of the I. D. Act, 1947 was issued and consequently the action of the management in accepting the applications for Voluntary Retirement Scheme was ab initio null and void and it must be deemed that the workmen are in service. It is in that context that they have prayed for various reliefs for the 105 workers who are enlisted at Exhibit "c" who have withdrawn their V. R. S. applications.