Consider Employee’s Service Length and Employer’s Conduct While Granting Back-Wages:  Madhya Pradesh HC

The Jabalpur bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court ruled that when granting back-wages, the length of service of an employee, as well as the employer’s conduct must be considered.

The bench of Justice Sanjay Dwivedi was hearing a petition filed by Environmental Planning and Coordination Organisation (EPCO).

The petition challenged the award of Labour Court through which Jagdish Prasad Sahu was reinstated in service with full back-wages.

Sahu spent almost ten years working for the Environmental Planning and Coordination Organisation (EPCO). He was hired as a chowkidar in January 1989, and the petitioners terminated his employment by oral order in June 1990.

Sahu was not given any notice before his service was terminated, nor was he paid one month’s salary in lieu of the notice.

After the petitioners neglected to show up, the labour court issued an ex-parte award declaring Sahu’s termination from service to be unlawful.

The High Court relied upon the decisions of Supreme Court in Deepali Gundu Surwase v. Kranti Junior Adhyapak Mahavidyalaya and others (2014 where the Apex court has held that if order of reinstatement is based holding the termination illegal and it is also a case of employee that he was not gainfully employed after termination then reinstatement should be given with full back-wages.

The Apex court also noted that it is the employer’s responsibility to demonstrate that the individual was gainfully employed following removal.

According to the bench, the employee asserted that he was unemployed after his termination in both his statement of claim and the statement recorded before the presiding officer, but the petitioners failed to meet that burden in this case.

The court also noted that, while the petitioners contested the matter, they had not demonstrated any seriousness in challenging Sahu’s position or the Labour Court’s finding.

As a result, the court dismissed the petition and declined to intervene in the Labour Court’s contested award.