Case: The Management Of Tocklai Experimental Stationrepresented Vs. The Workmen And Another(And Connected Appeal)

This industrial dispute was raised against the management of the Tocklai Experimental Station (hereafter called the Station) by its workmen. Six out of the demands made by the workmen formed the subject-matter of reference. In the present appeals we are concerned with three of them. . Demand No. 1(a) was that the employees junior staff of the Station should be given pension in lieu of the existing practice of paying gratuity. This demand has been rejected by the tribunal. The other demand made by the employees was No. 3(b) and it had reference to the claim for free housing accommodation or adequate allowance in lieu thereof. This demand has been partially allowed by the tribunal and it has directed that house allowance in each case shall be raised at the flat rate of Rs. 20/- instead of Rs. 10/-. The decision of the tribunal in respect of these two demands did not satisfy the workmen and so by special leave of this Court they have filed Civil Appeal No. 460 of 1960. The demand of the junior staff for bonus which was resisted by the Station : has been partially allowed by the tribunal. It has ordered that the Station shall give puja bonus at the same rate as the employees working for the Indian Tea Association at Calcutta are getting. This part of the award is challenged by the Station in its appeal by special leave by Civil Appeal No. 459 of 1960. That is how the two cross-appeals arise.

Court's reasoning:
The learned Attorney-General contends that in making the demand for bonus the workmen have entirely misconceived the true position of the industrial law on the point, and he argues that the Assam Government was not justified in making the reference in the form it has been made and the tribunal was not justified in making the award in the manner it has done. The workmen made their demand for bonus in these words: "The Union requests the introduction of bonus for the Toklai Staff in the following grounds." Then follow six grounds. It was urged that the Station is an arm of the tea industry and is maintained by the members of the I. T. A. who give bonus to their employees, that the Station exists and works for the advancement of the tea industry and increasing its profits and thus is an industry, that the I.T.A. employees at Calcutta office are given bonus, that the employees of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce receive bonus that the employees of Shamshernagar and Tulsipara branches of this very Station used to be given bonus so long as these branches were functioning and that the personnel of the scientific research laboratories attached to many industrial concerns receive bonus, and so the workmen in the present case were entitled to make a claim in that behalf.Before we part with this appeal, however, we ought to add that after special leave was granted to the Station to prefer its appeal it applied for stay of the award directing the payment of puja bonus and stay was granted by this Court on condition that the amount of puja bonus should be paid by the Station to its employees on their furnishing security to the satisfaction of the management. Accordingly the Station has paid to its workmen puja bonus for three years. We suggested to the learned Attorney-General that in case his appeal were to succeed the Station may consider whether it would partially forego its claim to recover the amount already paid by it to its workmen, and the learned Attorney-General, after consulting his client, has stated before us that the Station would forego one-third of the total amount paid by it to its employees under the orders of this Court, This one-third amount we were told, is in the neighbourhood of Rs. 65,000/- The learned Attorney-General also stated that the balance of two-third amount which it would recover from its employees can be paid by each one of them either by easy installments or at the time when he would receive his gratuity or provident fund; the employee may exercise his option in that behalf. It appears that some of the employees who received the said amount have left the service of the Station and at that time have refunded the amount received by them. The Station would be prepared to give back to such employees one-third of the said amount. In our opinion, the attitude adopted by the Station in this matter is very fair and it would relieve the workmen from their liability to return one-third of the total amount received by them in pursuance of the orders of thisis true that the Station gives housing accommodation for members of the senior staff, but as the tribunal has pointed out there are special reasons how more favourable terms have to be offered to senior research staff in order to get the services of properly trained and properly equipped personnel. In our opinion, the tribunal was right in refusing to draw an analogy between the requirements of the senior research staff and the junior staff with whose claims the tribunal was dealing. Therefore we are not satisfied that there is any substance in the grievance made by the workmen against the award passed by the tribunal in respect of house allowance.