HARRIS MINERAL SUPPLY CO Vs. SALIM M MERCHANT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioners in this case seek a writ of certiorari for quashing a part of an award given by the Industrial Tribunal, Bombay, on 18th June 1964 in a dispute referred to it by the Central Government in the exercise of its powers under section 10 (1) (d) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, (hereinr after referred to as the Act ).

(2.) THE petitioners are owners of ochre mines situated in Jaitwara area of district satna. The employees of the mines presented as many as thirty-two demands against the petitioners and raised an industrial dispute. When the dispute could not be settled in conciliation proceedings, the Central Government, by an order made on 15th June 1962 under Section 10 (1) (d) of the Act referred to the industrial Tribunal Bombay, for adjudication ten matters arising out of the dispute and specified in a schedule annexed to the order. The Industrial Tribunal gave an award on those matters on 18th June 1964. The petitioners question the award in respect of the following issues:'

(3.) THE Tribunal has found that the petitioners employ between 400 to 600 workmen of whom 25p. c. are time-rated and the remaining are piece-rated; that the total number of mines worked by them is twenty-five; and that the ochre mine industry is seasonal as the mines cannot be worked during the rainy season and they remain closed during that period. On the first question relating to wage-rates, the Tribunal, after examining the capacity of the industry to pay the wages demanded by the employees and the work done by a worker each day, and after taking into account the "nature and existing conditions of work in the ochre mines", formed the view that the present wages to the workmen were inadequate and did not even fulfil the minimum wage requirements and concluded by observing that "taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of the case, the nature of the work, the financial position of the industry, and the level of wages in the region in other industries particularly the iron ore mining", it would be fair to fix the minimum wage for the daily rated workmen at Rs. 2. 12 np. per day inclusive of dearness, allowance, and that those working in the gallaries, if daily rated, should be paid an extra allowance of Rs. 0. 12 np. per day. After finding that there were no Assistant Managers employed in the mines, the Tribunal then proceeded to fix the wages of other categories of workers, namely, clerks and supervisors, mates, time-rated male and female labour, and piece-rated male and female labour. The Tribunal then considered the second question, namely, whether the persons employed as. 'mine managers' in the ochre mines of the petitioners were 'workmen' within the meaning of Section 2 (s) of the Act. It found that they were managers only in name and not employed in any managerial or administrative capacity; and that they were merely supervisors looking after and supervising the labour and production work at the mines, and accordingly they were 'workmen' as defined by Section 2 (s) of the Act. The wages of these managers were fixed by the Tribunal at Rs. 125/-p. m. inclusive of dearness allowance with an extra Rs. 5/- p. m. as gallary allowance. The Tribunal was of the opinion that the revised wages should be given retrospective effect, and it held that they should come into effect as from 1st January 1963.