MUKUND STAFF AND OFFICERS ASSOCIATION Vs. MUKUND LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE present petition arises out of the judgment given in Complaint (U. L. P.) No. 139 of 1995. The complaint was initiated by the Union alleging Unfair Labour Practices Under Item 9 of the Schedule IV of M. R. T. U. and P. U. L. P. Act, 1971. It was the say of the Union that all throughout the respondent-Company has given Sunday as a weekly off. The Company used to call some workmen on Sunday giving compensatory holiday on any other week-day and this was being done in consultation with the Union. The Company has now decided to virtually make it a common practice leading to staggering off the weekly holiday starting with the work of supervisors, who were at the relevant time 26 in number. This the Company has been insisting without entering into a dialogue with the Union, and the workmen having decided not to give up their weekly off, the insistence on the part of the Company that the workmen should come on Sunday, viz. weekly off, is being a complaint of as an unfair labour practice.

(2.) THE respondent Company has been saying that the workmen were being called on Sunday and were being given compensatory holiday and were also paid extra amount for having work done on Sunday, and it being totally exigency based, there is no question of this action of the Company amounting to a change in service conditions leading to the unfair labour practice as alleged.

(3.) VIRTUALLY, there is little dispute between the parties. The Sunday being a weekly off is accepted. The workmen having worked on Sundays i. e. weekly off, is also accepted by both, the Union and the Company. The Union however maintains that this was done with its consent or in consultation with the Union and it having decided not to either give consent or take up a stand of not working on weekly off, the insistence on the part of the Company, in this regard, would amount to a change and, therefore, unfair labour practice. The Company, on the other hand, says that there is no scope of any consent or dialogue and there has never been any consent or dialogue with the Union because calling the workmen on Sunday depends upon the requirement of a given section of the Company manufacturing steels, and hence on account of exigencies of the work, the Company is forced to call workmen on Sundays. It does not amount to any change in service conditions requiring any notice under section 9-A of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.