THE TAMIL NADU INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENTS (CONFERMENT OF PERMANENT STATUS TO WORKMEN) ACT, 1981*

ACT NO. 46 OF 1981

5th August, 1981

An Act to provide for the conferment of permanent status to workmen in the industrial establishments in the State of Tamil Nadu. BE it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Tamil Nadu in the Thirty-second Year of the Republic of India as follows:- * Vide the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette Extraordinary, Pt.IV, Sec. 2 dated the 10th August, 1981, at p.519.

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S.1 Short title, extent, application and commencement.

(1) This Act may be called the Tamil Nadu Industrial Establishments conferment of Permanent Status to Workmen) Act, 1981.

(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Tamil Nadu.

(3) It applies to every industrial establishment (not being an establishment of seasonal character or in which work is performed only intermittently) in which not less than fifty workmen were employed on any day of the preceding twelve months. If any question arises whether an industrial establishment is of a seasonal character or whether work is performed therein only intermittently the decision of the Government thereon shall be final :

Provided that the Government may, by notification, apply the provisions of this Act to any industrial establishment employing such number or workmen less than fifty * as may be specified in the notification.

(4) It shall come into force on such date1 as the Government may, by notification, appoint :

Provided that not

S.2 Definitions

2.Definitions.--- In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,--

(1) “employer” means the owner of an industrial establishment to which this Act for the time being applies and includes--

• (a) in a factory, any person named under clause (f) of sub section (1) of section 7 of the Factories Act, 1948 (Central Act LXIII of 1948) as manager of the factories;
• (b) in any industrial establishment under the control of any department of any State Government in India, the authority appointed by such State Government in this behalf, or where no authority is so appointed, the head of the Department;
• (c) in any other industrial establishment, any person responsible to the owner for the supervision and control of the Industrial establishment;

(2) “ Government ” means the State Government;

(3) “ industrial establishment ” means---

• (a) a factory as defined in clause (m) of Section 2 of the Factories Act, 1948 (Central Act
  

S.3 Conferment of permanent status to workmen.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force every workman who is in continuous service for a period of four hundred and eighty days in a period of twenty four calendar months in an industrial establishment shall be made permanent.

(2) A workman shall be said to be in continuous service for a period if he is, for that period, in uninterrupted service, including service which may be interrupted on account of sickness or authorized leave or an accident or a strike, which is not illegal, or a lock-out 1[***] or a cessation of work which is not due to any fault on the part of the workman.

2Explanation I.-- 3[For the purposes of computing the continuous service referred to in sub-sections (1) and (2), a workman shall be deemed to be continuous service during the days on which --- ] ;

• (i) he has been laid off under an agreement or as permitted by standing orders made under the Industrial Employme
  

S.4 Appointment of Inspectors.

(1) The Government may, by notification, appoint such persons or such class of persons as they think fit to be Inspectors for the purpose of this Act within such local limits as the Government may specify.

(2) Every Inspector shall be deemed to be a public servant within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code (Central Act XLV of 1860).

S.5 Power and duties of Inspectors.

Subject to any rules made by the Government in this behalf, the Inspector may, within the local limits for which he is appointed,--

• (a) enter at all reasonable times and with such assistants, if any, who are persons in the service of the Government or of any local authority as he thinks fit to take with him, any industrial establishment;
• (b) make such examination of the industrial establishment and of any registers, records and notices and take on the spot or elsewhere the evidence of such person as he may deem necessary, for carrying out the purposes of this Act: and
• (c) exercise such other powers as may be necessary for carrying out the purpose of this Act.

S.6 Penalties.

(1) Every employer who contravenes the provisions of section 3 shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees and in the case of continuing offence with a further fine which may extend to two hundred rupees for every day after the first during which the offence continues.

1[(2) Every employer who contravenes the provisions of any rule made under section 10 shall be punishable, for a first offence, with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, and for a subsequent offence, with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees) ]

2[(3)] No prosecution for an offence punishable under the section shall be instituted except with the previous sanction of the prescribed authority*.

1 Ins. by Act. 9 of 2003, S.2 (with effect from 1st July, 2003).

2 Renumbered by Act. 9 of 2003, S.2 (with effect from 1st July, 2003).

*See Rule 5

S.7 Act not to apply to workmen employed in certain industrial establishment.

Nothing contained in this Act shall apply to workmen employed in an industrial establishment engaged in the construction of buildings, bridges, roads, canals, dams or other construction work whether structural, mechanical or electrical.

S.8 Cognizance of offence.

No court inferior to that of a metropolitan magistrate or a judicial magistrate of the first class shall try any offence under this Act.

S.9 Power to exempt.

The Government may, by notification, exempt conditionally or unconditionally any employer or class of employers or any industrial establishment or class of industrial establishment from the provisions of this Act.

S.10 Power to make rules.

(1) The Government may make rules to carry out the purposes of this Act.

(2) All rules made under this Act shall be published in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette, and unless they are expressed to come into force on a particular day, shall come into force on the day on which they are so published.

(3) All notification issued under this Act shall, unless they are expressed to come into force on a particular day, I come into force on the day on which they are published.

(4) Every rule made or notification issued under this Act shall, as soon as possible, after it is made or issued, be placed on the table of 1[the Legislative Assembly), and if , before the expiry of the session in which it is so placed or the next session, 1(the Legislative Assembly) agree in making any modification in any such rule or notification or 1( the Legislative Assembly) ] agree that the rule or notification should not be made or issued, the rule or notifi