MSP METALLICS LTD Vs. STATE OF ODISHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is against the order as contained in Memo No.2905 dated 6.4.2016(Annexure-14) by order of His Excellency the Governor under the signature of the Under Secretary to Government, Labour and ESI Department, Government of Odisha whereby and where under in exercise of power conferred under Sub-section (3) of Sec. 10 of the Industrial Disputes Act,1947 the State Government has prohibited continuance of the lockout.

(2.) Brief facts in narrow compass is that the petitioner-Management is a company established in pursuance to the memorandum of understanding concluded with the Government of Odisha on 27.11.2004 under which business of steel manufacturing facilities has been establishment to manufacture sponge iron, pellet, pig iron, captive power and steel billet. For the purpose of carrying out manufacturing activities at its factory, the petitioner company employs about 700 workmen. Apart from managerial and supervisory personnel employed throughout and taking together the employee strength at the factory is 1050. That apart, there are several contractors engaged by the company at its factory for the purpose of executing various casual jobs who employ contract laborers in the factory. The petitioner-company having failed financial hardship in the manufacturing process due to various reasons, has requested the workmen to give full cooperation so that the financial crisis may be resolved, but the workers has agitated by launching large scale demonstration and strike inside the factory and due to that the manufacturing process has been hampered leading to more financial crunch and the management was unable to pay wages to the workers, because of its inability to generate sufficient fund, which has been brought to the notice of the Collector-cum-District Magistrate, Jharsuguda by the representation dated 15.2.2016 under Annexure-3 regarding redressal of their grievance of release of salary and wages of the workers. The Collector-cum-District Magistrate, Jharsuguda has referred the matter before the Conciliation Officer for its settlement and the Conciliation Officer has tried to resolve the dispute but however, in the meanwhile petitioner-management has given a notice of lockout and thereby the Conciliation Officer-cum-District Labour Officer, Jharsuguda has submitted failure report before the appropriate Government by submitting failure report with a request that the notice of lockout declared by the Management of MSP Mettallics Ltd., Marakuta, Dist.Jharsuguda is not legal and justified and to take appropriate steps in this regard and thereafter the appropriate Government while accepting the failure report has made the terms of reference for its adjudication by the Labour Court, the terms of reference is as follows:

(3.) The Government in exercise of power conferred under Sub-Section (3) of Sec. 10 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 has prohibited continuance of the aforesaid lockout vide order dated 6.4.2016 (Annexure-14) which is under challenge in this writ petition on the ground that provision of section 10(3) of the Industrial Disputes Act,1947 stipulates a condition that prohibitory order under section 10(3) of the Act only to be passed where an industrial dispute has been referred to the Board but since the dispute mainly relates to disbursement of salary/wages as would be evident from grievance of the workmen under Annexure-3 which is the representation dated 15.2.2016 and from its perusal, the sole grievance of the workmen is to release salary and wages of the workers and employees for the months of Dec., 2015 and Jan., 2016 and as such the order dated 6.4.2016 cannot be said to be in consonance with the provisions of Sec. 10(3) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 since the prohibitory order has been passed on the basis of the Reference dated 6.4.2016 which is not the dispute having been raised by the workmen as would be evident from their representation dated 15.2.2016.