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1977 Supreme(Cal) 84
High Court Of Calcutta
S.K.Datta & G.N.Ray, JJ.
Officer Commanding Engineer Stores Department Kankinara
Vs.
Authority Under The Payment Of Wages Act West Bengal
Decided On : March 11, 1977
Advocate Appeared:
Amar Prasad Chakraborty, Milan Chandra Bhattacharya, Nani Coomar Chakraborty, Prasanta Kumar Ghosh, Rathindra Nath Das
The Authority under the Payment of Wages Act has jurisdiction to determine claims for extra wages, provided that the dispute is incidental to the claim for wages and does not involve complicated questions of fact or law.
Headnote:
PAYMENT OF WAGES ACT - JURISDICTION OF AUTHORITY - DETERMINATION OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT - CLAIM FOR EXTRA WAGES FOR EXCESS HOURS OF WORK - INTERPRETATION OF DEPARTMENTAL RULES AND ORDERS - LEGALITY OF ACTION TAKEN BY GOVERNMENT.
Fact of the Case:
The workers in the engineering stores depot (machinery) at Kankinara, a registered factory under the Factories Act, 1948, claimed extra wages for 1/2 hours of work on week days in excess of the normal working hours of 43 hours. The Authority under the Payment of Wages Act allowed the claims, but the petitioner, the Officer Commanding the depot, challenged the Authority's jurisdiction and the legality of the claims.
Finding of the Court:
The Court held that the Authority had jurisdiction to determine the claims, as the dispute was incidental to the claim for wages and did not involve complicated questions of fact or law. However, the Court found that the workers were not entitled to extra wages for the excess hours of work, as the Government had increased the prescribed working hours by 1/2 hours on week days by a valid order, and there was no provision for overtime payment for such excess hours under the departmental rules.
Issues: 1. Whether the Authority had jurisdiction to determine the claims for extra wages. 2. Whether the workers were entitled to extra wages for the excess hours of work.
Ratio Decidendi: 1. The Authority had jurisdiction to determine the claims, as the dispute was incidental to the claim for wages and did not involve complicated questions of fact or law. 2. The workers were not entitled to extra wages for the excess hours of work, as the Government had increased the prescribed working hours by 1/2 hours on week days by a valid order, and there was no provision for overtime payment for such excess hours under the departmental rules.
Final Decision: The Court made the rules absolute and set aside the impugned orders of the Authority under the Payment of Wages Act in connected cases and dismissed the connected applications before the Authority.
1. GOVERNMENT of India in its Ministry of Defence is the owner of an engineering stores depot (machinery), at Kankinara shortly known as ESD (M. The said depot is registered as a factory under the Factories Act, 1948, and the workers in the said factory are civilian workers in defence services and are governed, inter alia, by Military Engineering Services Regulations (hereinafter referred as M. E. S. Regulations. Prior to February 15, 1965 the working hours of the depot was 43 hours excluding rest intervals of 21/2 hours as follows :
Week days Saturdays.
0800 hours to 1600 0730 hours to
houns with break from 1300 hours
1230 hours to 1300 hours.
According to the petitioner, on February 3, 1965, the following notification was issued (Annex 'c' to the petition.
Part i Order
Issued by
Lt. Col. D. S. Khainah Engrs.
O C E. S. D. (M) Kankinara.
Item 7.
11. Working Hours in ESD (M) Kankinara. Reference Part I Order No. 9 dated 29. 1. 65. As directed by E-in-C, Army Head Quarters to work 451/2 hours in a week excluding intervals for rest on account of lunch break the working hours will be observed with effect from 15 February, 1965 by ESD (M) Kankinara including esd (M) Sub Depot Kanchrapara as under:-
Category
Week days
Saturday
Industrial staff and Non Industrial other than Ministerial Staff.
0800 hrs. to 1630 hrs, with break from 1230 hrs. to 1300 hrs.
0730 hrs. to 1300 hrs.
Authority : E-in-C Army HQ Nos. 50416/e 3 D/1 dated 28 Sep. 64 and 50416/e3 D/1 dated 5 dec. 64.
Sd /-
For officer Commanding Major.
2. AS a result the working hours of Industrial staff and Non-industrial staff in the said depot was increased by 1/2 hrs. on week days since February 15, 1965 resulting in an increase of working hours 21/2 hours a week or 451/2 hours a week in place of 43 hours a week. It is obvious that on account of this increase, no extra wages for overtime was payable under the Factories Act.
The case of the workers in the esd (M) is that they have been required to give extra service for 1/2 hours on week days in excess of normal hour's of work. As such they are entitled to extra wages calculated on the proportionate basis of wages of normal hours of work. The Officer Commanding esd (M) being the person responsible for payment of such wages having delayed to make payment the workers by separate petitions filed in 1965 before the Authority under Section 15 (1) of the Payment of Wages Act. 1936 for the State of West Bengal (hereinafter referred to as the Authority)claimed wages so delayed, the basis of the claim as set out in the petition in Form A to the Act as a specimen is as follows :
"3. (1) The applicants wages have not been paid for the following wage periods. 15-2-65 to 28-265 and 1-3-65 to 31-8-65. Wages for half an hour worked on all week days present excepting Saturdays and Sundays during the period from 15. 2. 65 to 31. 8. 65 have not been paid i. e. 57 hours wages due,"
The applicant further stated that the monthly rate of wages (e. g. in ease Nani Gopal Bhattacharjee) was Us. 113 and value of the relief was put in the Rs. 32. 60 plus Rs. 25/- as compensation.
3. THIS application was contested by the Officer Commanding E. S. D. (M)Kankinarah, the petitioner before us, by filing a written objection. It was stated therein that the working hours prior to February 15, 1965 was 43 hours a week. Since the said date, the working hours have been revised by the Ministry of Labour and Employment as indicated in the notice to 45 hours excluding recess per week. Further no question of extra wages for overtime work arose as under the Factories Act no worker is entitled to claim extra wages for any number of working hours within 48 hours and regulating number of hours of work was in the discretion of the petitioner before us. The petitioner accordingly denied the liability for the amount claimed or any portion thereof.
4. THE Authority heard the above applications as also similar applications together on evidence and allowed the claims by or
