OTHER SOCIAL SERVICES

LABOUR DEPARTMENT

Organisation.

ALL THE OFFICES DEALING WITH LABOUR MATTERS fall within the administrative control of the Industries and Labour Department of the Government of Maharashtra. The Commissioner of Labour is the head of all such offices. At present, he has under him (i) six Deputy Commissioners of Labour (four at Bombay and one each at Nagpur and Pune), (ii) twenty-seven Assistant Commissioners of Labour (eighteen at Bombay, four at Nagpur, two at Pune and one each at Aurangabad, Nasik and Kolhapur), (iii) thirty-seven Government Labour Officers (eighteen at Bombay, two at Nagpur, three at Pune, two at Aurangabad and one each at Thana, Kalyan, Nasik, Jalgaon, Sholapur, Kolhapur, Ahmednagar, Sangli, Nanded, Amravati, Bhandara and Akola), (iv) Chief Inspector of Factories, Bombay, with subordinate Inspectors at different important centres of the State, and (v) Chief Inspector of Steam Boilers and Smoke Nuisance, Bombay with subordinate inspectorates.

The Commissioner of Labour performs the statutory functions entrusted to him under the various Acts, Central as well as State. He also supervises their enforcement administratively.

The Central Acts which the Commissioner of Labour has to enforce are (1) the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, (2) the Indian Trade Unions Act, 1926, (3) the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946, (4) the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, (5) the Working Journalists (conditions of service and miscellaneous provisions) Act, 1955, (6) the Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961, and (7) the Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966.

The State Acts which he has to enforce are (1) the Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946, (2) the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947, (3) the Central Provinces and Berar Shops and Establishments Act, 1947, (4) the Hyderabad Shops and Establishments Act, 1951, and (5) the Bombay Shops and Establishments Act, 1948.

The Commissioner of Labour supervises and co-ordinates the working of the offices under his control. In addition, the office of the Commissioner of Labour performs the following functions—

(1) Compilation and publication, of the Consumer Price Index Numbers for working class for Bombay, Sholapur, Jalgaon, Nagpur, Aurangabad, Nanded and Pune;

(2) Conducting of socio-economic enquiries into the conditions of labour;

(3) Compiling and disseminating information on labour matters in general and statistics regarding industrial disputes, agricultural disputes, agricultural wages, absenteeism, cotton mill production, trade unions, etc., in particular;

(4) Publication of two monthlies, viz., the Labour Gazette, and the Industrial Court Reporter;

(5) Supervision over the working of the Bombay Shops and Establishments Act, 1948, where it is administered by local authorities; and

(6) Conducting advisory service in personnel management.

The Deputy Commissioner of Labour, Nagpur, is declared as the regional head of all the offices under the Commissioner of Labour in Nagpur and Aurangabad Divisions and has been entrusted with the necessary powers for running the administration of the Labour Offices in these Divisions. He performs statutory functions entrusted to him under the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947. He is the certifying authority of Standing Orders under the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, the Registrar of Recognised Unions under the said Act and has also been appointed as Authority under Section 16 of the Act to assist the Commissioner of Labour under that Section. He is assisted by two Assistant Commissioners of Labour stationed at Nagpur and having jurisdiction over the entire Vidarbha Division. Both these Assistant Commissioners are appointed as Authorities under Section 16 of the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947, and one of them is also appointed as Assistant Registrar of Recognised Unions under the said Act. There are also Government Labour Officers at Nagpur and other centres. They perform the statutory duties of Labour Officer entrusted to them under the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947. They are appointed as Conciliators under the said Act and are also Inspectors under the Shops and Establishments Act and the Minimum Wages Act. The Government Labour Officers are also appointed as Inspectors under the Working Journalists Act. They deal with individual complaints from all industries which fall within the purview of the State Government. There is a separate socioeconomic research section in the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Labour, Nagpur, which conducts enquiries into various socio-economic and labour problems in different industries.

Government Labour Officers.

The Government Labour Officers at Bombay work under the supervision and control of the Chief Government Labour Officer, Bombay. At various sub-offices they are under the administrative control of the respective heads of offices or the regional heads. In the Vidarbha Division, there are five Government Labour Officers, two at Nagpur and one each at Bhandara, Akola and Amravati. The Government Labour Officers are statutory Labour Officers under the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947, and are also appointed as conciliators under that Act. In the absence of recognised unions in any industry, they have to elect representatives of employees for the purpose of representation of employees in collective disputes and in the absence of any such elected representative they themselves have to act as representatives of the employees. They attend to individual complaints from employees from all the industries and keep government and other authorities informed of the latest situation in the labour and industrial fields by sending regular reports to these authorities. They also act as Minimum Wages Inspectors and Shops Inspectors and, as such, enforce the provisions of these Acts in the areas under their jurisdiction. Being Inspectors under the Working Journalists Act, they are also concerned with the enforcement of the provisions of the said Act.

Labour Machinery in the District.

Yeotmal is one of the eight districts in the Vidarbha Region. The Government Labour Officer at Amravati looks after the work of Yeotmal district also. There is also one Inspector, Shops and Establishments, with headquarters at Yeotmal who looks after the enforcement of the Bombay Shops and Establishments Act, 1948. He has to attend to the complaints of the employees under the above Act. The Government Labour Officer in charge of Yeotmal district supervises the work of the Inspector and implements the labour laws in the district.

Conciliation Machinery.

The conciliation work and other labour disputes coming from Yeotmal district are attended to by the Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Nagpur, who has been notified as conciliator and/or Conciliation Officer under the Bombay Industrial Relations Act and/or the Industrial Disputes Act, respectively.

Labour Unions under the Bombay Industrial Relations Act.

The provisions of the Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946 have been made applicable to the Vidarbha and Marathwada regions of the State with effect from 1st May 1965. One of the Assistant Commissioners of Labour, Nagpur, has been notified as Additional Registrar with one Assistant Registrar under him for Vidarbha Region. The Registrar's work is of a quasi-judicial nature and falls under the following heads: —

(a) Recognition of undertakings and occupations,

(b) Registration of unions,

(c) Maintenance of approved lists of unions,

(d) Registration of agreements, settlements, submissions and awards,

(e) Maintenance of list of joint committees constituted under Section 48 of the Act, and

(f) Maintenance of a list of protected employees of unions connected with the industries covered under the Act.

Trade Unions Act, 1926.

One of the Deputy Commissioners of Labour at Bombay has been notified as the Registrar of Trade Unions under the Indian Trade Unions Act, 1926, in addition to his duties as Deputy Commissioner of Labour. The Deputy Commissioner of Labour, Nagpur, in addition to his other duties has been notified as the Additional Registrar of Trade Unions for Vidarbha Region under the Trade Unions Act, 1926. The Additional Registrar is assisted by one of the Assistant Commissioners of Labour, Nagpur, who has been notified as the Deputy Registrar of Trade Unions for Vidarbha Region. The work done by the Additional Registrar in connection with the administration of the Trade Unions Act includes the registration of trade unions, registration of amendments to the constitutions of the unions, registration of the dissolutions, amalgamation and cancellation of registration of trade unions and submission of annual reports on the working of the Act in the State based on the information contained in the annual returns submitted by registered trade unions under Section 28 of the Act.

In 1968 there were 25 unions in Yeotmal district registered under the Trade Unions Act, 1926.

Industrial Court.

The State Industrial Court, Nagpur, is constituted under Section 22 of the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947. It exercises jurisdiction over the entire Nagpur Division.

The President and the members of the Industrial Court under the Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946, are also appointed as President and members of the State Industrial Court, Nagpur, under the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947. In addition, one member is stationed at Nagpur with an Assistant Registrar and the necessary ministerial staff under him.

There are eight District Industrial Courts in the Nagpur Division one each at Nagpur, Bhandara, Amravati, Akola, Chanda, Yeotmal, Buldhana and Wardha.

The duties and powers of the State Industrial Court, Nagpur, are detailed in Chapter III of the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947. The State Industrial Court acts as a court of arbitration in industrial disputes referred to it by a civil court, on reference by the State Government or on application by an employer or employee concerned or by a representative of the employee concerned or by the Labour Officer to decide the illegality of strike, lock-out or any notice of change. The parties may refer the dispute to the State Industrial Court, Nagpur, on failure of the conciliation proceedings. The State Government may also make a reference to it for a declaration whether a proposed strike, lock-out, closure or stoppage of work would be illegal.

In its appellate jurisdiction, it decides appeals preferred to it from the orders of District Industrial Court, Wage Board and Commissioner of Labour.

Wage Board.

There is a provision under Chapter IV-A. of the Central Provinces and Berar Industrial Disputes Settlement Act, 1947, for appointment of Wage Boards in different industries for dealing with the disputes in the respective industries. A Wage Board for the Cotton Textile Industry in the Vidarbha Division has been constituted by the State Government. References of disputes to the Wage Board are made by Government by a notification issued under Section 37-C of the Act. An appeal against the decision of the Wage Board lies to the State Industrial Court.

In Yeotmal district there were in all 50 strikes during the period from 1960 to 1968. The industry-wise classification of the strikes is as follows: —

Industrial Disputes.

During the period from 1960 to 1968 there were 19 industrial disputes in the district. Of these three were settled and no settlement was arrived at in the rest.

Wages and Earnings.

There is no working class cost of living index for Yeotmal district or any other centre in the district.

Minimum Wages Act, 1948.

The Government of Maharashtra have fixed the minimum rates of wages for the following industries in the Yeotmal district: —

(1) oil mill;

(2) tobacco (including bidi making) manufactory;

(3) rice mill, flour mill or dal mill;

(4) cotton ginning and cotton pressing manufactory;

(5) any industry in which process of printing by letter press, lithography, photogravure or other similar work or work incidental to such process or book binding is carried on;

(6) rubber manufactory;

(7) glass industry;

(8) tanneries and leather manufactory;

(9) potteries;

(10) stone breaking or stone crushing;

(11) road construction or building operations;

(12) employment in any local authority;

(13) shop and commercial establishment not being an employment in any bank; and,

(14) cinema exhibition industry.

Bombay Shops and Establishments Act, 1948.

The Bombay Shops and Establishments Act, 1948 has been made applicable to the municipal areas of Yeotmal, Pusad and Wani, in the district.

Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 and Employees' Provident Fund Act, 1952.

The Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 and the Employees' provident Fund Act, 1952, are applicable to Yeotmal district.

Authority under Payment of Wages Act 1936.

In Yeotmal district the Civil Judge, Senior Division, Yeotmal, has been appointed as the authority under the Payment of Wages Act for the area within his jurisdiction.

The Civil Judges who have been appointed as authorities under the Payment of Wages Act have been appointed authorities under the Minimum Wages Act also to hear and decide claims arising out of payment of less than the minimum rates of wages fixed to employees employed in their respective jurisdiction.

Factory Department.

The enforcement of the Factories Act is entrusted to the Factory Department. The function of the Factory Department is to ensure that the provisions of the Factories Act are observed by the managements of factories covered under the Act. Besides this, the Department has to administer various other labour laws viz., Payment of Wages Act, Maternity Benefit Act, Employment of Children Act and Cotton Ginning and Pressing Factories Act in so far as Section 9 of the said Act is concerned.

This Department is under the administrative control of the Commissioner of Labour and Director of Employment. The Chief Inspector of Factories is the head of the office and is officially subordinate to the Commissioner of Labour and Director of Employment. The Department has a regional office at Nagpur under the Deputy Chief Inspector of Factories, who has jurisdiction over eight districts of Vidarbha and five districts of Marathwada. Further, there is a sub-office at Akola, under a Junior Inspector of Factories who has jurisdiction over Yeotmal district. The activities of this department also extend to securing labour welfare amenities such as education, recreation, sports, co-operative societies, housing, etc.

The main function of the Inspector is to ensure that the provisions of the Factories Act are observed by the Managements of the Factories to which the Act is applicable. The Collector is the ex-officio Inspector of Factories in the district of Yeotmal.

The Inspector has power to prosecute, conduct and defend before the courts after taking permission from the Chief Inspector of Factories, Maharashtra State, Bombay.

Workmen's Compensation Act.

Under the provisions of the Workmen's Compensation Act (VIII of 1923), the Commissioner for Wokmen's Compensation, Compensation Bombay, has been given exclusive jurisdiction over Greater Act Bombay. The Commissioner has also exclusive jurisdiction to try all cases relating to the Western, Central and South Central Railways and the hydro-electric companies under the management of Messrs. Tata Hydro-electric Agencies, Ltd., arising in the State irrespective of the district in which they occur. The Commissioner has also general jurisdiction over the whole State.

The principal reason for giving the Commissioner for Workmen's Compensation, Bombay, jurisdiction over the whole State is to enable him to settle the cases with insurance companies and other firms which have their head offices in Bombay city. But as this arrangement necessarily entails a certain amount of overlapping, government have issued instructions under Section 20 (2) of the Act for distribution of work between the Commissioner and the ex-officio Commissioners. Under these instructions, the Commissioner at Bombay is authorised—

(a) to receive deposits for distribution of compensation under Sub-sections (1) and (2) of Section 8;

(b) to issue notices to, and to receive applications from dependants in cases of deposits under these sub-sections; and

(c) to receive agreements for registration under Section 28, whenever the accident may have taken place.

Where a deposit is received or an agreement is tendered for registration, the Commissioner notifies the ex-officio Commissioner concerned. Applications for orders to deposit compensation when no deposit under Section 8 (1) has been received, and other applications provided for in Section 22 of the Act should be made to the ex-officio Commissioner within whose jurisdiction the accident occurs. Notices to employers under Section 10-A requiring statements regarding fatal accidents in the district are issued by the ex-officio Commissioners and reports of fatal accidents made under Section 10-B are also received by them. After notice has been issued by the ex-officio Commissioner under Section 10-A, the employer deposits the money with Commissioner at Bombay and the latter notifies the receipt of the deposit to the ex-officio Commissioner concerned. Applications for review or commutation of half-monthly payments have to be made to the Commissioner who passed the original orders.

As regards the cases arising out of accidents on the South Central Railway, they are dealt with by the ex-officio Commissioners concerned.

Steam Boilers and Smoke Nuisances Department.

Yeotmal district forms a part of the Vidarbha region and falls under the jurisdiction of the Senior Inspector of Steam Boilers and Smoke Nuisances with headquarters at Nagpur and is in charge of the Nagpur Division whose boundaries correspond to that of the Vidarbha region. As the Indian Boilers Act, 1923 and the rules made thereunder viz., the Maharashtra Boiler Rules, 1962, and Maharashtra Economiser Rules, 1965 apply to the whole of the State, the Act and the Rules are also applicable to Yeotmal district. The administration of the Act and the Rules is carried out by the Senior Inspector as a part of his overall duty for the Vidarbha region.

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