S. 79 of the Factories Act, 1948, does not provide for standardized annual leave, and industrial tribunals have jurisdiction to make awards granting privilege leave and sick leave to employees, even if such awards provide for more generous leave than that prescribed by S. 79(1).

Judgment

GAJENDRAGADKAR, J. : This appeal by special leave arises from an industrial dispute between the appellant the Alembic Chemical Works Co. Ltd., and the respondents, its workmen. The said dispute related to a single demand made by the respondents with regard to leave. This demand consisted of three parts, (a) one month s privilege leave with full salary and dearness allowance on completion of eleven months service in a year with a right to accumulate upto six months, (b) one month s sick leave with full salary and dearness allowance for each year of service with right to accumulate for the entire period of service, and (c) every workman should be entitled to take leave in proportion to the number of days he is in service of the company at the time of his application for the same. This dispute was referred by the Government of Bombay for adjudication before the Industrial Tribunal under S. 10 (1) (d) of the Industrial Disputes Act XIV of 1947.

2. The Tribunal considered the contentions raised by the appellant against the respondent s demands, took into account awards or agreements between employers and their employees in comparable concerns and made its award. In regard to privilege leave the Tribunal has ordered that leave should be granted to the staff members covered by the reference as follows.

Privilege leave upto 3 ..16 days as at completed years of service present per year.

Up to 9 completed years ..22 days per year.

And thereafter ..one month for every 11 months of service.

The award allows accumulation of privilege leave upto three years. As regards sick leave, the Tribunal has ordered that the appellant should give its staff covered by the present award 15 days sick leave in a year with full pay and dearness allowance with a right to accumulate upto 45 days. It has also directed that no medical certificate should be demanded if sick leave for three days or less is asked for. In regard to the third item of demand concerning leave in proportion the Tribunal has made appropriate direction which it is unnecessary to set out for the purpose of this appeal.

3. Before the Tribunal the main contention raised by the appellant was in regard to the propriety and reasonableness of the demand and in regard to the practice prevailing in comparable concerns. Before this Court, however, the provision made by the award in regard to privilege leave has been attacked mainly on the ground that the Tribunal had no jurisdiction to make such an award having regard to the provisions of S. 79 of the Factories Act, 1948 (63 of 1948) (hereafter called the Act). It is urged that S. 79 of the Act has made exhaustive and self-contained provisions with regard to the granting of annual leave with wages to the employees to whom the said Act applies, and the effect of S. 79 is to introduce standardisation in the matter of leave; which means neither the employer voluntarily, nor an Industrial Tribunal by its award, can add to the leave prescribed by the said section. In the matter of leave S. 79 is a complete code, and no additions to the said leave can be made either by a contract or by an award. It is common ground that the respondents are governed by the provisions of the Act. This point was not raised before the Tribunal, but since it is a point of law which arises on admitted facts we have permitted the learned Attorney-General to argue it before us.

4. The Act was first enacted in 1934 as Act 25 of 1934. Since then it has been amended from time to time. Its main object is to consolidate and amend the law regulating labour in factories. For the purpose of determining which concerns and which employees would be governed by the Act S. 2 (m) and (1) define "factory" and "worker" respectively. Even a broad view of the scheme of the Act and a perusal of its provisions would clearly indicate that the Act is a beneficent measure and its policy is to make reasonable provisions for the preservation of health of the workmen, their safety and their welfare. W