STEEL AUTHORITY OF INDIA LTD Vs. PANCHU BEHERA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE management of Steel Authority of india Ltd. has filed this writ petition challenging the award dated November 24, 2003 passed by the Industrial Tribunal, rourkela, in I. D. Case No. 15/2002, holding that the services of the workmen are deemed to have been regularized under the petitioner-management with effect from March 30, 1989, when the contract labour system was abolished by the State Government, without any pecuniary benefits and differential pay and their inter se seniority will be determined from the date of such regularization and the workmen will be entitled to get consequential service benefits for the said period and their retirement benefits will be given accordingly.

(2.) THE brief facts of the case are that the petitioner-management had been engaging contract labour through licensed contractors in some of its process, like Coke Oven department. Complaining of non-regularisation of contract labourers by the petitioner-management, Rourkela Shramik sangha, Opposite Party No. 2, represented by sri R. K. Panda, filed Writ Petition (Civil) No. 617/1986 before the Hon'ble Supreme Court of india, under Article 32 of the Constitution. It was alleged that the contract labourers have been employed by the management of Steel authority of India Ltd. through various contractors at its Rourkela Steel Plant, but they are doing jobs which are perennial in nature and identical to the jobs which are being done by their regular employees. As such, they are entitled to the same pay which is being paid to the regular employees of Rourkela Steel Plant and are entitled to be treated as their regular employees.

(3.) DURING pendency of the aforesaid writ petition before the Apex Court, the government of Orissa, in exercise of its powers under Section 10 (1) of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 (CLRA act for short), issued Notification dated March 30, 1989, prohibiting employment of contract labour in 104 specified jobs, out of a total number of 246 jobs. The present aggrieved workmen belong to the categories of workers in respect of 104 prohibited jobs.