NAGESH HOSIERY MILLS Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN these two writ petitions, one by the management and the other by the workers, challenge was made to the award of the labour Court, Ludhiana, dated February 4, 1982.

(2.) THE workmen, namely, the petitioners in Civil Writ Petition No. 4228 of 1982, were employed in the spinning unit of nagesh Hosiery Mills, the petitioners in civil Writ Petition No. 3751 of 1982. The spinning unit of the Hosiery Mills was closed with effect from September 15, 1978, and the intimation or the closure was also given to the Labour commissioner, Punjab. As a result of the closure, the workmen were retrenched. The workmen raised an industrial dispute that their services were terminated without payment of retrenchment compensation and without following the procedure as envisaged under the Industrial Disputes act (hereinafter referred to as the Act ). The said dispute was referred to the labour Court for adjudication. The labour Court found on the basis of the material placed before it that there was no closure of Nagesh Hosiery Mills. It further held that the workmen received the amount due to them on applications filed by them under S. 33c of the Act but there was no proof that the amounts received by the workmen was in full and final settlement including the retrenchment compensation. The Labour Court found that the workmen were actually got themselves employed elsewhere after the termination of their services and, therefore, they are not entitled to the relief of reinstatement and accordingly held that the workmen were entitled to retrenchment compensation for their illegal termination of the services and awarded the retrenchment compensation.

(3.) THE management filed Writ Petition no. 3751 of 1982 against the award of retrenchment compensation in Civil Writ petition No. 4228 of 1982, claiming that they should be reinstated in service.