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TMI Blog2009 (3) TMI 917X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in the year 1981 in M/s P.V.K. Distillery Ltd. (now rechristened as Lords Distillery Ltd.). On 14.8.1982 he was shifted to bottling section as a permanent workman by the orders of the General Manager. On 19.1.1985 services of the respondent were terminated by an oral order from the employer. Aggrieved by the said order, respondent went before the Labour Court inter-alia alleging that he was employed in the establishment of the employer and that his services were terminated orally in an unjustifiable and illegal manner. Appellants on the other hand contended, that, respondent was engaged by Gaya Singh Yadav, contractor and therefore respondent was never in their employment and thus master-servant relationship never existed between them. 3)Labour Court after considering and appreciating the oral and documentary evidence on record, has come to the conclusion, that, the respondent, Mahendra Ram, was in the continuous employment of the establishment since 1980 and the employer unjustifiably and illegally terminated workman's services from 19.1.1985. The labour court has also come to the conclusion that the respondent-workman has worked for more than 240 days in a calendar year, as requ ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... U.P. Industrial Disputes Act, and accordingly has directed reinstatement of respondent in service with all other service and monetary benefits. 10)The only question which requires to be considered by us in this appeal is, whether the Labour Court was justified in awarding full back wages, while directing the employer to re-instate the workman in service. Learned counsel for the appellant in this regard contends that the High Court has acted erroneously by declining to interfere with the award of the Labour Court. He would urge that the grant of relief of reinstatement and back wages is not automatic in all matters arising under the provisions of Industrial Disputes Act. He would also urge that the appellant will suffer irreparable loss and injury, if it has to employ a contractor workman on its rolls with full back wages even for the period when the establishment was closed. In support of his arguments, reliance is placed on the observations made by this court. 11)In the case of P.G.I. of M.E. and Research, Chandigarh v. Raj Kumar, (2001) 2 SCC 54, this court has held that the payment of back wages having a discretionary element involved in it, has to be dealt with, in the facts ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... try may not be compelled to pay to the workman for the period during which he apparently contributed little or nothing at all to it and/or for a period that was spent unproductively as a result whereof the employer would be compelled to go back to a situation which prevailed many years ago, namely, when the workman was retrenched. 14)In the case of Haryana Urban Development Authority v. Om Pal, (2007) 5 SCC 742, it is stated that, it is now also well-settled that despite a wide discretionary power conferred upon the Industrial Courts under Section 11A of the 1947 Act, the relief of reinstatement with full back- wages should not be granted automatically only because it would be lawful to do so. Grant of relief would depend on the fact situation obtaining in each case. It will depend upon several factors; one of which would be as to whether the recruitment was effected in terms of the statutory provisions operating in the field, if any. 15)In deciding the question, as to whether the employee should be recompensed with full back wages and other benefits until the date of reinstatement, the tribunals and the courts have to be realistic albeit the ordinary rule of full back wages on r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he age of superannuation and the question of reinstatement does not arise. Because of the award, the respondent workman will be entitled to his retiral benefits like gratuity, etc. and accepting the statement of the learned Senior Counsel for the appellant Mills that it is undergoing a financial crisis, on the facts of this case we think it appropriate that the full back wages granted by the Labour Court be reduced to 50% of the back wages." 20)In the instant case, the notice had been issued limiting the question to the payment of 50% of the total back wages. This does not mean that the respondent is not entitled to further relief. The point that his services were terminated in the year 1985 and since then the case is pending for the last two decades in different courts also has no relevance, since he had approached the court within a reasonable time. It is not his fault that the case is still pending before the court. These grounds could not be held against him for denying the relief of back wages otherwise he would suffer double jeopardy of losing back wages and delay in getting the reinstatement for no fault of his. Therefore, it would have been more enlightening, had the High ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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