Workmen completing 480 days of service are entitled to permanent status under the Tamil Nadu Industrial Establishments Act, regardless of subsequent classification as contract labourers.

ORDER :

All these Writ Petitions are connected and, since identical grounds are raised, are taken up and disposed of by this common order.

A.The Writ Petition:

2. The prayers made in these Writ Petitions are by the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) and its officers challenging the individual awards issued by the authority(respondent No.1 in the respective Writ Petition), under the Tamil Nadu Industrial Establishments (Conferment of Permanent Status to Workmen) Act, 1981 (referred to as 'the Act of 1981'). The awards grants permanent status to the individual Workmen, who are designated as party respondents in the Writ Petitions.

B. The Brief Facts:

3. The workmen submitted claim petitions to the authority, asserting that they had completed 480 days of continuous service within two calendar months and, therefore, should be granted permanent status. These workmen contended that since around 1998, they had been working directly under management for several years before being transitioned to contractors and classified as contract workmen. Nevertheless, they have rendered service for the past 20 to 25 years. An award was passed in all these cases, granting permanent status effective from the date they completed 480 days of service with the petitioner management. Feeling aggrieved, the current writ petitions have been filed.

C.Case of the Management:

4. The case of the Writ Petitioner is that it was originally constituted as the Electricity Board under the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948 (Central Act) on 01.07.1957. Regarding the services under the Board, Regulations were framed under Section 79 (c) and 79 (k) of the said Act. From 1978 to 1990, to meet the contingent manpower requirements for the electrification of various parts of the State, the petitioner resorted to engaging contract labourers by Board Proceedings No. 38 dated 23.05.1986.

4.1. The former Tamil Nadu Electricity Board was committed to filling 700 Helper positions through Direct Recruitment from candidates possessing the prescribed qualifications. The matter was challenged and escalated to the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India. In 1991, the Hon’ble Supreme Court appointed the Hon’ble Mr. Justice Khalid (Retd) to recommend criteria for the recruitment of Helpers. The commission submitted its report recommending the absorption and regularization of 18,006 contract laborers. The Supreme Court accepted these recommendations and instructed the petitioner – Management not to recruit anyone else until these 18,006 individuals were absorbed. By 1998, all 18,006 contract labourers had been absorbed.

4.2. On 08.08.1998, an identification process was also conducted to determine who should be paid ex-gratia and to conclude that no new contract labourers were engaged after 1998. In that process, 8,500 persons who were regularly engaged from 1993 were identified and paid ex-gratia with retrospective effect from 1995 to 1996. Again, in 2004 – 2005 and 2005 – 2006, another 15,600 contract labourers were identified, and ex-gratia payments were extended to them.

4.3. The trade unions representing these contract laborers submitted a demand for the absorption of contract workmen and raised industrial disputes. Before the Labour Commissioner, a settlement under Section 12 (3) of the ID Act was reached for the absorption of 21,600 contract labourers. The settlement outlined the cr