Indian Kanoon - Search engine for Indian Law

u/section10 of the Act starting with the formation of a Committee by Resolution dated 30th March, 2000 should be completed as expeditiously as possible and in any case within a period of six months from today."

9) Govt. of India issued notification dated 31/7/2002 (Ex.W"W1/2) under Section 10 of the Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970 (in short "CLRA Act"), thereby prohibiting employment of contract labour in the offices/establishments of CPWD for the process, operation or work specified in the Schedule appended therein, which inter- alia included Electrician, Wiremen, Khalasi (Electrical), Fitter, Plumber, Mechanic etc. etc.10) It is worthwhile to mention here that in a celebrated decision in the case of Steel Authority of India Ltd. Vs. National Union Waterfront Workers, (2001) 7 SCC 1, the Apex Court while extracting provisions of Section 10 of CLRA Act observed in para 68 that following consequences do follow on issuing a notification under Section 10( 1) of the CLRA Act :-

4) the contract labour is not rendered unemployed as it generally assumed but continues in the employment of the contractor as the notification does not sever the relationship of master and servant between the contractor and the contract labour;

5) the contractor can utilize the services of the contract labour in any other establishment in respect of which no notification under Section10(1) has been; issued where all the benefits under the CLRA Act which were being enjoyed by it, will be available';

"The principle that a beneficial legislation needs to be construed liberally in favour of the class for whose benefit it is intended, does not extend to reading in the provisions of the Act what the legislature has not provided whether expressly or by necessary implication, or substituting remedy or benefits for that provided by the Legislature. We have already noticed above the intendment of the CLRA Act that it regulates the conditions of service of the contract labour and authorizes in Section 10(1) prohibition of contract labour system by the appropriate Government on consideration of factors enumerated in sub-section (2) of Section 10 of the Act among other relevant factors. But, the presence of some or all those factors, in our view provides no ground for absorption of contract labour on issuing notification under sub-section (1) of Section 10. Admittedly, when the concept of automatic absorption of contract labour as a consequence of issuing notification under Section 10(1) by the appropriate Govt. is not alluded to either in Section 10 or at any other place in the Act and the consequence of violation of Sections 7 and 13 of the CLRA Act is explicitly provided in Sections 23 and 25 of CLRA Act. It is not for the High Courts or this Court to read in some unspecified remedy in Section 10 or substitute for penal consequences specified in Section 23 and 25 a different sequel, be it absorption of contract labour in the establishment of principal employer or a lesser or a harsher punishment. Such an interpretation of the provisions of the statute will be far beyond the principle of ironing out the creases and the scope of interpretative legislation and as such, clearly impressible. We have already held above, on consideration of various aspects that it is difficult to accept that Parliament intended absorption of contract labour on issue of abolition notification under Section 10(1) of CLRA Act."

125(5)-On issuance of prohibition notification under Sec. 10(1) of the CLRA Act prohibiting employment of contract labour or otherwise, in an industrial dispute brought before it by any contract labour in regard to conditions of service, the Industrial Tribunal/Court will have to consider the question whether the contractor has been interposed either on the ground of having undertaken to produce any given result for the establishment or for supply of contract labour for work of the establishment under a genuine contract or is a mere ruse/camouflage to evade compliance with various beneficial legislations so as to deprive the workers of the benefit thereunder. If the contract is found to be not genuine but a mere camouflage, the so-called contract labour will have to be treated as employees of the principal employer who shall be directed to regularize the services of the contract labour in the establishment concerned subject to the conditions as may be specified by it for that purpose in the light of the following para 6 hereunder.125(6) If the contract is found to be genuine and prohibition notification under Section 10( 1) of the CLRA Act in respect of the establishment concerned has been issued by the Appropriate Government, prohibiting employment of contract labour in any process, operation or other work of any establishment and where in such process, operation or other work of the establishment, the principal employer intends to employ regular workmen, he shall give preference to the erstwhile contract labour, if otherwise found suitable and if necessary, by relaxing the condition as to maximum age appropriately, taking into consideration the age of the workers at the time of their initial employment by the contractor and also relaxing the condition as to academic qualification other than technical qualifications."