DISTRICT TRANSPORT MANAGER (ADMINISTRATION), ORISSA STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION Vs. PRESIDING OFFICER, LABOUR COURT AND ANR.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN these writ applications under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India, which have been heard analogously and will be governed by this common order, challenge is by the District Transport Manager (Administration) of the Orissa State Road Transport Corporation to the orders passed by the Presiding Officer Labour Court. Orissa Bhubaneswar, under Section 33C(2) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 in favour of the motor transport workers, each of whom figures as the opposite party No. 2 in the cases before us, computing their claims for extra wages for doing work on rest days in addition to the monthly rated wages under Section 26 of the Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961 (for short, the Act). According to the Labour Court, each workman shall, in respect of the work done on the day of rest, be entitled to twice his ordinary rate of wages in addition to the wages he is to receive for the day of test which in other words, would mean that for work done on the day of rest, the workman would be entitled to get thrice the ordinary rate of wages for that day.

(2.) THE impugned orders are sought to be assailed on two grounds:

(3.) THE Petitioner had not taken the stand before the Labour Court that it had no jurisdiction to entertain the applications and had not raised the question of want of jurisdiction as would clearly appear from the impugned orders and what is also important is the fact that in the writ applications before us, no such ground has been taken. Having submitted to the jurisdiction of the Labour Court without raising any objection in this regard at the stage of hearing, the Petitioner should not now be allowed to take this ground. In Sohan Singh and Ors. v. The General Manager, Ordnance Factory, Khamaria, Jabalpur and Ors. : A.I.R. 1981 S.C. 1862 the Supreme Court dealt with the matter in which the Appellants had made an application before the Central Government Industrial Tribunal -cum -Labour Court, Jabalpur, under Section 33 -C(2) of the Industrial Disputes Act. The applications were allowed and certain directions were given by the Labour court for quantification of the claims of the Appellants. The High Court in the writ application had not examined the merits of the order of the Labour Court. It set aside that order on the ground that on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the applications under Section 33 -C(2) were not entertainable by the Labour Court. The Supreme Court observed and held: