Inspiring story of
non journalist employee who succeeds finally after a long battle of 17
years
Gets benefit of regularization
and permanency as Teleprinter
Operator, Planner with
retrospective effect
Held entitled to all the
benefits of Palekar, Bachawat Awards
------------------------------
Mahesh Sakure, with M.Com.
degree, has been working with Lokmat Group of Newspapers at Bhandara, near
Nagpur, since 1.10.1996 . Initially he joined as Teleprinter Operator
but was later doing the work of Planner.
He was being paid monthly salary of Rs 1500/- which was raised to Rs 2000/-p.m.
Mahesh filed Complaint before
Industrial Court, Bhandara on
claiming the benefit of regularization and permanencey as Teleprinter
Operator and later as Planner and payment of wages and grant of all other
allied benefits as per Palekar and Bachawat Awards from the date he had
completed 240 days continuous service.
The management, inter alia, took the stand that he was not employee of
the newspaper establishment but that of a charitable organization known as
“Manav Sewa Trust”.
After recording evidence of both
sides and hearing them, the Industrial Court, Bhandara, granted to Mahesh
Sakure the benefit of regularization and permanency as Teleprinter Operator
w.e.f. 315.1997 and regularization and permanency as Planner w.e.f. 1.4.1998
and also granted overtime wages
at double the rate for the excess 12 hours a week he had put in as Planner,
which post falls in the catregory of “Journalist” and as per Section 6 of the
Working Journalists Act, requires him to work only for 36 hours a week as
against which he was being asked to work for 48 hours a week. The Court also rejected the contention of the
management that he was the employees of “Manav Sewa Trust”and not of “Lokmat”.
The management challenged the
said order of the Industrial in Bombay High Court, Bench at Nagpur, and sought
stay of the said order. The Learned
Single Judge granted stay of the order on the condition that the management
shall pay to the workman a sum of Rs 10 Lakhs and a monthly salary of Rs Ten
Thousand as interim relief, pending final decision of the case.
This order of the Learned Single
Judge was challenged by the management before the Division Bench of the High
Court by filing a Letters Patent Appeal which was dismissed by the Division
Bench. The management preferred a
Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court which was disposed of by the
Supreme Court with a slight modification of the order to the effect that out of
the amount of Rs 10 Lakhs granted to the workman as interim relief only Rs Five
Lakhs shall be paid to him and the remaining amount of Rs Five Lakhs shall be
kept in deposit by the High Court till
the disposal of the Writ Petition by the Learned Single and the same will be
disposed as per the orders of the Learned Single Judge to be passed on the
merits of the case. The other interim
order that during the pendency of the Writ Petition the employer shall pay
salary of Rs 10,000/- was however confirmed by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court also directed
the Learned Single Judge to dispose of the Writ Petition filed by the
management within a period of three months.
Upon this direction of the
Supreme Court, the Learned Single Judge heard the matter of merits and finally
dismissed the Writ Petition of the management with a direction that the workman
should be paid the remaining balance of Rs Five Lakhs with interest and also
imposed the cost of Rs 10,000/- on the management.
This judgment and order of the
Learned Single Judge was again challenged by the management in the Supreme
Court which was dismissed by the Supreme Court in limini on 12.10.2015.
Meanwhile, the employee Shri
Sakure has been fixed on a monthly salary of about Rs 35,000/- p.m., which he
has been receiving under protest as details thereof have not been provided by
the management.
The aforesaid claim of the
workman is now calculated to be in the region of about Rs Forty Nine Lakhs for
payment of which he has already represented to the management failing which
another round of litigation for the same is round the corner.
That since the management has not
acceded to his request a claim for the sum of Rs 49,37,720.13 has already been
filed before the Labour Court at Bhandara.
UNION FREED
FROM THE CLUCTCHES OF LOKMAT
MANAGEMENT –
The background :
As stated elsewhere in this
newsletter, the Lokmat Shramik Sanghatana, Nagpur, which is functioning since
1996, which is an affiliate of AINEF and a composite union of journalists and
non journalist employees, has been fighting for reclassification of Lokmat
Newspapers on the basis of their gross revenue in respect of Palekar Award,
Bachawat Award, Manisana Award and now Majithia Award.
That the Lokmat Shramik Sanghatana,
Nagpur, has also been fighting a Reference before the Industrial Tribunal,
Nagpur, in regard to regularization and permanency of 78 journalist and non
journalist employees who are being engaged on contract basis for several years
now.
That besides these two major demands,
the union has also succeeded in many other individual disputes details of which
are being given separately.
The Victimisation :
Feeling aggrieved and angered with the aforesaid
efforts of the union to cover a major ground remaining untouched by any union
in the country and also the efforts of the union at its expansion throughout
Maharashtra/India by opening a Branch of the Union at Akola and Goa, the
management dismissed on 12.11.2013 President of Goa Branch Shri Rajesh
Inmulwar, who was working on contract basis,
for his refusal to resign from the union.
That from 13th November
2013 employees started “Non cooperation movement” as a result of which, it is
alleged by the management, that newspapers’ printing was badly affected putting
it to huge financial loss.
On 20.11.2013, 61 employees, including
eight journalists, from various centres
in the State, bulk of them 25 in number from Nagpur, all principal office
bearers, were dismissed without enquiry and as the References are pending
management sought approval of its action in respect of the dismissal of these
61 employees before the Industrial Tribunal.
The management examined 120 witnesses and union examined 24
witnesses. Management’s arguments are
over and on 20.4.2016 Union has also concluded its arguments. The decision of the Tribunal is expected in
June 2016.
Capturing of the union by Lokmat management :
Immediately on 20.11.2013 itself, before actual
dismissal of office bearers of the Union, the management and its lackeys,
Lokmat in its office premises and during office hours itself “elected” new
office bearers of the union and the first thing done by them was to send a
registered ack due letter to Shri S.D. Thakur, Advocate, informing that he was
no longer Legal Advisor of the Union and, therefore, he should not appear on
behalf of the union in any case.
Letters of intimation were also sent
to the Additional Commissioner of Labour, Registrar of Trade Unions and the
management of Lokmat.
The Great betrayal :
Thereafter, the most important work these lackeys
of the management (Editor of City Edition and one Executive in Printing
Depatment posing as President and General Secretary) did was to sign an
unconditional “settlement” with the
management (i) withdrawing References seeking claissification of newspaper
establishment on the basis of its gross revenue in respect of Palekar,
Bachawat, Manisana and now Majithia and (ii) withdrawing Reference seeking
regularization and permanency of 78 journalists and non journalist employees who
are working on contract basis without any condition or benefit to the employees
concerned.
When the real office bearers of the Union
initiated legal proceedings against these bogus office bearers, several
objections were raised to prolong the matter and on initial points the matter
was taken to the High Court also. The
High Court rejected the Writ Petition of these lackeys of the management. That after hearing the parties, the
Industrial Court by its order dated 29.3.2016 held that the earlier office
bearers (the real office bearers) are the true office bearers of the Union and
the management’s lackeys posing as
President and General and Working Committee members are not the office bearers
and working committee members of the Union as alleged by them .
The employees are agog with joy and sense of pride
for the glorious victory and celebrated the same on 1st May
boisterously.
13 Pasters get the designation and Grade of Scanners in Lokmat
The
13 Pasters who have been performing the duties of Scanners for a long time were
not being given the designation and grade of Scanner and hence they had filed
complaints before the Industrial Court under the provisions of Maharashtra
Recognition of trade Unions & Prevention of Unfair Labour Practices Act,
1971. The Industrial Court, Nagpur
allowed these complaints and granted them designation and grade of Scanners with
retrospective effect viz., 13.12.2004.
The
Industrial Court also held that the category of Scanner being a journalist
category the employees were required to work for only 36 hours a week as per
Section 6 of WJ Act whereas in fact they were being asked to work for 48 hours
a week. Therefore, all these employees
should be given overtime wages at double the rate for all the years they have
been working as Scanners for extra 12 hours a week they have worked.
The
employees have filed recovery proceedings against the management of Lokmat for
recovery of amounts ranging between Rupees 17 Lakhs and Rupees 38
Lakhs per employee.
With May Day Greetings,
SD Thakur, Adv
President, AINEF
