Treating the compromise recorded by Tribunal as award.

Some time in 1952, there was a dispute between the management of 32 mills in Coimbatore and the workmen employed therein in regard to the bonus payable to the latter for the years, 1949, 1950 and 1951. By G. O. Ms. No. 2019 dated 9th May, 1952, the State Government referred the dispute for adjudication to the Industrial Tribunal, Coimbatore, constituted under section 7 of Act XIV of 1947. The Industrial Tribunal took on file the dispute as I.D. No. 13 of 1952 and issued notices to the Secretary of the Coimbatore District Textile Workers’ Union arid to the Honorary Secretary, the South Indian Mill Owners’ Association Coimbatore, the parties mentioned in the Government Order, requiring them to file their respective statements in connection with the dispute. The Government communicated a copy of the G. O. to three other Unions, namely, the Coimbatore District Textile Mills’ Staff Union, the Coimbatore District Textile Jobbers’ Union and the National Textile Workers’ Union. The notices were issued to those Unions as well by the Industrial Tribunal. No notice was, however, given to the petitioner namely, the District Mill Workers’ Union, Coimbatore, although they had participated in the antecedent conciliation proceedings which culminated in the reference under section 10 of the Act.

At an early stage of the enquiry, there was a dispute between the parties as to whether the managment should give inspection of their accounts to the Union representatives. Although the Industrial Tribunal directed the management to give inspection of the accounts, the order was quashed on 30th October, 1954, by this Court in W.P. Nos. 755 and 756 of 1952. In the meanwhile, that is, on 22nd October 1952, an agreement was entered into between the management and the District Textile Workers’ Union, Coimbatore, in regard to the subject-matter of dispute The petitioner, namely, the District Mill Workers’ Union, did not accept that compromise, and they made their position clear by a letter to the management on 28th October, 1953. The workers, received the bonus agreed to be paid under the agreement referred to above, without prejudice to their rights. That this agreement was not taken by the parties or by the Industrial Tribunal as a final settlement of the claim, is clear from the fact, that after the disposal of the writ petitions, W.P. Nos. 755 and 756 of 1952, the Industrial Tribunal set down I.D. No 13 of 1952, for hearing, and issued notices to various Unions, the petitioner being one of them. In response of that notice, claim statements were filed on 14th March, 1957, by the petitioner and the other Unions, on the basis of what is now come to be known as the Full Bench formula.

Three Unions which were represented by the Indian National Trade Union Congress (hereafter referred to as I.N.T.U.C.), namely, (1) The National Textile Workers’ Union, Coimbatore, (2) The Coimbatore District Textile Workers’ Union, Coimbatore, and (3) The Coimbatore District Textile Mill Staff Union, entered into an agreement with the management in respect of bonus for the years 1949 to 1952 To that agreement, the petitioner, the District Mill Workers’ Union, Coimbatore, was not an assenting party. Indeed, on the 23rd March, 1957,the petitioner sent a communication to the Industrial Tribunal, Coimbatore, stating that the Union was not consulted by the management, while entering into the compromise. The petitioner, therefore, requested the Tribunal to continue the enquiry into the dispute which had been pending for quite a long time. The industrial dispute was taken up for hearing on the same day. The agreement, dated 23rd of March, 1957, was sought to be recognised as one in final settlement of the dispute ; the petitioner disassociated itself from the compromise, and wanted to agitate the question of bonus. The Industrial Tribunal overruled the petitioner’s claim for hearing on the merits of the case and passed an award in terms of the agreement, dated 23rd March, 1957.