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Madras HC upholds tribunal order in favour of AAI loaders

Our Legal Correspondent

CHENNAI, Nov 29

THE Madras High Court has upheld the order of the Industrial Tribunal, Chennai, asking the Airports Authority of India (AAI), Chennai, to absorb loaders deployed as casual labour at its cargo division in the Meenambakkam Airport and regularise their serv ices prospectively from December 1994.

A Division Bench comprising Mr Justice P. Sathasivam and Mr. K. Gnanaprakasam, while setting aside the order of the single judge directing the Centre to consider abolition of contract labour, said that the Tribunal had rightly awarded the relief in favou r of the workmen.

``...In such a circumstance, more particularly when the conclusion of the Industrial Tribunal/Labour Court is based on acceptable legal evidence, interference by this Court exercising jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution is very limited''.

``The learned (single) Judge seems to have not only overlooked certain relevant materials, but by adopting a negative approach had belittled the relevance and importance of several vital and important factual aspects brought on record'', the Bench observ ed.

The AAI (earlier International Airports Authority of India) (1st respondent) engaged Airfreight Private Ltd as contractor for supplying workers, and the private company employed 90 workers who were deputed to work on loading and loading cargo in the Meen ambakkam Airport since 1978. Their work was directly supervised by the AAI though the monthly pay was paid by the private company. The first respondent terminated the contract with the private company in 1985 and the members of the appellant Union (Inter national Air Cargo Workers' Union) were directly employed by the first respondent as casual workmen to do the same work.

Thereafter, as per direction of first respondent and as per orders of this Court, they formed an industrial co-operative society and the first respondent awarded the contract of handling of cargo to the said society in 1986.

In 1989, the workers filed a writ petition, demanding grant of service security to them. The petition was dismissed on December 18, 1989 with a liberty to the workers to raise an industrial dispute before the appropriate forum. The Government of India, M inistry of Labour, to whom the workers referred the dispute, asked the Industrial Tribunal to adjudicate on the dispute.

The Tribunal, after holding that the action of the management of AAI was unjustified in not absorbing the workers/members of the Airport International Co-operative Service Society, passed an award directing the first respondent to absorb the members of t he petitioner union/workers with effect from December 23, 1994, namely the date of the award. The AAI preferred a writ petition against the award of the Tribunal.

The Division Bench held that after becoming direct workmen of the AAI from November 1985 to July 1986, the management ought not to have reverted them back to the contract system and such action was illegal. If the management wanted to re-introduce the co ntract labour system, it ought to have given notice.

On the control of the workers, the Bench said that though the workmen were supplied by the second respondent (Airport Industrial Co-op Society), the entire control was with the 1st respondent management (AAI).

Referring to the agreement reached between the Society and the management, the Bench said that in the circumstances that prevailed at the relevant time, the workers had no other option except to accept it, otherwise they would lose the employment, which they had all along. Merely because the counsel who represented the workmen had consented to the terms of the agreement, that did not prevent the affected workmen from questioning the same before the appropriate forum.

The Bench set aside the order of the single judge and confirmed the award of the Tribunal.