The Applicability and the Scope of Standing Orders

Indian Legal System > Civil Laws > Labour Laws > Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 > Scope of Standing Orders

In this article, we shall study the applicability and the scope of the Industrial Employment Act, 1946 or Standing Orders.

The Applicability or the Scope of the Act:

This Act extends to the whole of India. Under Section 1 Subsection 3, the Act will apply to all industrial establishments employing 100 or more workers (50 or more in the State of Maharashtra) employed on any day preceding 12 months. It must be noted that it is not necessary that the establishment should have employed 100 (50 in the State of Maharashtra) workmen thought the year, it is clarified that the Act becomes applicable even if such number of workmen were employed even for one single day in the preceding twelve months.

In Balakrishna Pillai v. Anant Engg. Works (P) Ltd, (1975) II LLJ 391 case, the Division Bench of the Bombay High Court held that once the Act becomes applicable to an industrial establishment, it does not cease to apply on account of a fall in the number of workmen in the establishment, below one hundred.

Section 1(3) further lays down that the appropriate Government may, after giving not less than two months’ notice of its intention so to do, by notification in the Official Gazette, apply the provisions of this Act to any industrial establishment employing such number of persons less than one hundred as may be specified in the notification. Please check this number with the concerned state.

In several states, the governments have extended the application of the “Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946” to the industrial establishments employing 50 or more persons. Actually, there is no need to delimit the number of employees. As long as the two parties of the agreement agree to enrich the productivity, production, and multi-skilling of the industrial establishment, the Standing Orders may be prepared by the management in consultation with the federation or recognized unions. In case of any disagreement, the disputed matter will be decided by the competent certifying authority.

Important:

• If the Certified Standing Orders are contrary to the Model Standing Orders they will not prevail over the Model Standing Orders.
• The Settlement between employer and employee, if it is inconsistence with the provisions of Model Standing Orders it will not be binding on them. (Engineering Workers’ Association vs. J. D. Jamdar, Member Industrial Court & Ors. 2004 III CLR 315 (Bom. H. C.))
• The service conditions of the employees working in Zilla Parishad, Panchayat Samiti, Municipal Council, and Municipal Corporation are governed under the provisions of Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 as the provisions of this Act are applicable to them. Unless Notification issued by the Government as per Section 13­B of the Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 the provisions of Model Standing Orders will prevail over the service rules of these establishments. Pyarelal v. The Municipal Council, Ramtek,1992 I CLR 327(Bom.H.C.), Kishor J. Echperi v. M. R. Bhope, 1987 II LLN 263(Bom.H.C.), Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay v. Laxman Saideo Timmanyapyati & Ors., 1991 I CLR 653(Bom.H.C.).
• The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 is not applicable to the Educational Institution. Hindi Sahitya Sammelan Prayag vs. Presiding Officer, Labour Court, Allahabad 2005 (104) FLR 834 (Allahabad H.C.)
• There can be no two sets of Model Standing Orders one for old workman and one for the new workman. Model Standing Orders are binding to all employees working in the establishment either they are old or new workmen employed by the employer in the establishment. Agra Electric Supply Co. Ltd. vs. Alladin and Ors., 1969 II LLJ 540 (SC).

Establishments to Whom Act is Not Applicable:

This Act is not applicable

• To any industry to which the provisions of Chapter VII of the Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946, apply;
• To the establishment, where the number of employees is less than 100 (in Maharashtra 50) or as the limit prescribed by the respective state.
• To any industrial establishment to which the provisions of the Madhya Pradesh Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1961 apply: Provided that notwithstanding anything contained in the Madhya Pradesh Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1961, the provisions of this Act shall apply to all industrial establishments under the control of the Central Government.
• To an industrial establishment where the workman employed to whom the Fundamental and Supplementary Rules, Civil Services (Classification,  Control and Appeal) Rules, Civil Services (Temporary Service) Rules, Revised Leave Rules, Civil Service Regulations, Civilians in Defence Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, or the Indian Railway Establishment Code or any other rules or regulations that may be notified in this behalf by the appropriate Government in the Official Gazette. 

The Rules made thereunder the Act contains the model standing orders. The model Standing Orders would be applicable immediately on the date on which the Act becomes applicable and if the Standing Orders are either not framed or during the intervening period of the date of the applicability of the Act and the date of certification of the standing orders.

In Western India Match Co. V. Workmen, AIR 1973. SC 2650 case, the Supreme Court held that the standing orders imply a contract between the employer and the workmen. The certified Standing Orders have a statutory force. Therefore, the employer and the workmen cannot enter into a contract overriding the statutory contract as embodied in the certified Standing Orders framed under the Act.

Exemption Under Section 13 B of the Act:

Section 13B. Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946

Act not to apply to certain industrial establishments.

Nothing in this Act shall apply to an industrial establishment in so far as the workmen employed therein are persons to whom the Fundamental and Supplementary Rules, Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, Civil Services (Temporary Services) Rules, Revised Leave Rules, Civil Service Regulations, Civilians in Defence Service (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules or the Indian Railway Establishment Code or any other rules or regulations that may be notified in this behalf by the appropriate Government in the Official Gazette, apply.

The industrial establishment of Government Department are not exempted from the provisions of Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946  unless the Government had issued a notification as per provisions of  Section 13­B of the said Act.

In Air India v. Union of India, 1991 LLR 158 case, where the question before the Delhi High Court was whether the Act is applicable to Air India Corporation. The Court observed that one of the important requirement of Section 13 B is that a notification must be issued by the appropriate government to this effect. It was not disputed that, in this case, the appropriate government would be the Central Government. However, the facts before the Court showed that the notification in question was issued by Air India, and not by the Central Government. This being so, it could not be said that the requirement of Section 13B was satisfied.

Power to Exempt (Section 14):

Section 14: Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946
Power to exempt:

The appropriate Government may by notification in the Official Gazette exempt, conditionally or unconditionally, any industrial establishment or class of industrial establishments from all or any of the provisions of this Act.

In Raman Nambiar v. Madras S.E.B., (1967) 1 LLJ 252 case, the Madras High Court has observed that the appropriate government by Section 14 of the Act to exempt an industrial establishment does not include the power to exempt a section of establishment or a particular class of workers in a given establishment.

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Indian Legal System > Civil Laws > Labour Laws > Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 > Scope of Standing Orders