On the Industrial Disputes Between Certain Banking Companies and Their Workmen
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ALL INDIA INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL (BANK DISPUTES) AWARD ON THE INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES BETWEEN CERTAIN BANKING COMPANIES AND THEIR WORKMEN (POPULARLY KNOWN AS THE SASTRY AWARD) REPRINTED BY THE INDIAN BANKS ASSOCIATION, BOMBAY BY PERMISSION OF THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA AWARD OF THE ALL INDIA INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL (BOMBAY DISPUTES), BOMBAY ON THE INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES BETWEEN CERTAIN BANKING COMPANIES AND THEIR WORKMEN BY THE TRIBUNAL CONSISTING OF SRI. S. PANCHAPAGESA SASTRY, CHAIRMAN SRI M. L. TANNAN, MEMBER SRI. V. L. D.'SOUZE, MEMBER CONTENTS XVIII Provident Fund 108—114 Chapter Pages (i) Rule of the Fund 108—112 Number (ii) The Imperial Bank of India 113—114 I Introductory 1—9 (iii) The Exchange Banks 114 (i) The Reference i—6 XIX Gratuity 114—118 (ii) Legislative provisions for settlement of industrial disputes 6—7 XX Pensions scheme 118-—120 (iii) History of the dispute 7—9 XXI Cash deposits, fidelity bonds, guarantee funds etc. 121—125 Jurisdictional points 9—13 (i) Cash deposits, fidelity bonds and other securities furnished by 121—123 I II Parties to the dispute etc. 13—15 the staff (i) Banks 13—1| (ii) Guarantee Fund 123—125 (ii) Labour 14—15 XXII Medical aid and expenses 125—130 (iii) Others affected 15 XXIII Insurance against old age etc. 130—131 IV Classification 15—27 XXIV Leave rules 131—136 (i-A) Classification of Banks 15—23 XXV Method of recruitment, conditions of service, termination of employment, (i-B) Imperial Bank of India and the Exchange Banks 23—24 disciplinary action etc. 136—146 (ii) Classification of areas 24—27 (i) Method of recruitment 136-—138 V Scales of pay etc. (General considerations) 28—30 (ii) Terms and conditions of service 139—142 (i) Wage structure 28—30 (iii) Procedure for taking disciplinary action 142—145 (ii) Number of grades 30 (iv) Procedure for termination of employment 145—146 (iii) Uniform basic scales 30 (v) Compensation in cases of retrenchment .... 146 VI Scales of pay: Clerical Staff 31—40 XXVI Waiving of age restrictions 147 (i) Demands etc. 31—33 XXVII Rules regarding promotions 147—148 (ii) Scales of pay awarded 33—40 XXVIII Policy regarding transfer 148—149 VII Scales of pay : Subordinate staff 40—43 XXIX Travelling allowance etc. 150—153 VIII Dearness allowance to staff etc. 43—48 XXX Subsistence allowance during periods of suspension 153—154 (i) Rate of deamess allowance 43—47 XXXI Standing orders 154 (ii) Dearness allowance to pensioners 47—48 XXXII Income and professional taxes 154—155 (iii) Absorption of dearness allowance in basic wage 48 XXXIII Utilization of proceeds from fines 155—156 IX House Rent Allowance 48—49 XXXIV Permission for pensioners before re-employment 156—158 IX Special allowances 49—51 XXXV Banks under moratorium 158 XI Other allowances 52-53 XXXVI Recognition of unions 158—161 XII General considerations 53—87 XXXVII Compensation to refugee employees 161—163 (i) Arguments on pay scale and dearness allowance 53—63 XXXVIII Right to existing terms of service 164—167 (ii) The Banking situation in the country 63—71 XXXIX Works Committees 167 (iii) Principles of wage determination 72—87 XL Compromise awards, Banks working under schemes of arrangement 167-169 KIll Rules for fitting the existing staff into the revised scales 87—90 etc. (i) General 87—88 (i) Compromise awards 167 (ii) For workmen who entered service before 3ist January, 1950 88—89 (ii) Banks working under schemes of arrangement etc. 167—169 (iii) For workmen who joined service after 3ist January, 1950` 89 (iii) United Bank of India Ltd. 169 (iv) General rules applicable to all workmen 89—90 XLI Our Award etc. 169—171 XIV Working hours and overtime 90—95 (i) Operation of the Award 169—170 XV Workmen to whom the award is applicable 95—100 (ii) Costs 170 XVI Depanment-in-charges etc. 100—101 (iii) Our Award 170—171 XVII Bonus 101—108 XLII Minutes of Dissent by Shri M.L. Tannan : (i) Payment of bonus. 101—107 (i) Basic Approach 171—177 (ii) Rules relating to eligibility 107—108 (ii) Should banks be classified into different categories for the purpose of the adjudication and if so on what lines ? 177—184 (iii) Scales of pay. : Clerical and subordinate staff and dearness allowance 184—191 (iv) House rent allowance. If the allowance is payable, should it be paid to all workmen 192 (v) Rules for fitting the existing staff into the revised scales of pay 192—193 (vi) Hours of work and overtime 193—194 (vii) Categories of workmen to whom the award of the Tribunal is applicable 194—195 (viii) Bonus including the qualifications for eligibility and method of payment 195 (ix) Gratuity including whether it should be compulsory or 195-197 Ex-graiia. Does the scheme recommended by Shri B. B. Singh for the United Provinces in his award needs revision (x) Travelling Allowance 197—198 (xi) Subsistence allowance during periods of suspension 199 (xii) Recognition of the All India Bank Employees’ Association and/or its constitute units. 199—200 (xiii) Right to existing terms of service where they are more liberal 200—201 than those of the awards of this Tribunal . Appendices 202—229 MINISTRY OF LABOUR 3. Sri V.L.D'Souza, Professor of Economics, University of Mysore-Member. 2. Section 2, Clause (bb) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 defines a 'banking company' as follows :- NOTIFICATION "Banking company" means a banking company as defined in Section 5 of the Banking Companies Act, 1949 (X of 1949), having branches or other establishments in more than one New Delhi, the 26th March 1953 State, and includes the Imperial Bank of India." No. LR. 100 (57)-In pursuance of section 17 of the Industrial Disputes Act, In this definition the word 'State' was substituted for the word 'Province' by the Adaptation of 1947(XIV of 1947), the Central Government hereby publishes the following award Laws Order, 1950. Section 5 of the Banking Companies Act, 1949 (X of 1949), defines a of the All-India Industrial Tribunal (Bank Disputes), Bombay, in the dispute between 'banking company' in clause (c) as follows:- certain banking companies and their workmen. "Banking company means any company which transacts business of banking in India." BEFORE THE ALL INDIA INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL (BANK DISPUTES), BOMBAY Clause (b) states, "banking means the accepting, for the purpose of lending or ADJUDICATION investment, of deposits of money from the public , repayable on demand or otherwise , and withdrawable by cheque, draft, order or otherwise." Between Clause (d) States, " 'Company' means any company which may be wound up under The banking companies mentioned in Schedule I to the Government of India, the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (VII of 1913)". Ministry of Labour Notification No. S.R.O. 36, dated 5th January 1952. The expression 'establishment ' is not defined but it means a place of business at which deposits are received, cheques cashed or moneys lent and includes a sub-office, pay-office and and sub-pay office. Their Workmen 3. By a further Notification No. S.R.O. 36, dated 5th January, 1952, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 10 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (XIV of 1947), the Central In the matter of an industrial dispute regarding the employees' pay scales, Government referred to this Tribunal for adjudication the matters specified in Schedule II (being dearness allowance, terms and conditions of their employment, etc. either matters in dispute or matters connected with, or relevant to, the dispute) as between PRESENT : employers and workmen in relation to all the banking companies specified in Schedule I to the said Notification . The Notification are set out in extenso in Appendix I. It recites that the Central Sri S. Panchapagesa Sastry, Chairman, Government is of opinion that an industrial dispute exists between employers and workmen in relation to some of the banking companies specified in Schedule I and that it considers it Sri M.L. Tannan, Member, desirable to refer for adjudication the matters specified in Schedule II which are either matters Sri V.L. D'Souza, Member. in dispute or matters connected with , or relevant to, the said dispute. Schedule I does not indicate the particular banks in relation to which "the Central Government is of opinion that an APPEARANCES: industrial dispute exists between employers and workmen" . It was not necessary to do so because under the terms of section 10, subsection (5) of the Industrial Disputes Act. 1947 as (As in Appendix III) amended, the Central Government has power, at the time of making the reference or at any AWARD time thereafter but before the sub-mission of the award by order in writing to include in that reference any other establishment, group or class of establishments whether or not at the CHAPTER I time of such inclusion any dispute exists or is apprehended in any of them, if the dispute referred is of such a nature that any other establishment, group or class of establishments of Introductory a similar nature is likely to be interested in or affected by such dispute. This power can be exercised by the Central Government either on an application made to it in this behalf or SECTION 1 - The Reference otherwise. It was in exercise of such powers that the Central Government, being of opinion By Notification No. S.R.O 35, Dated 5th January 1952 published in the Gazette that the dispute existing between employers and workmen in relation to some of the banking companies is of such a nature that the other banking companies specified in Schedule I are of India Extraordinary Part II-Section 3, the Central Government in the Ministry of likely to be interested in or affected by that dispute and that it is desirable to include those Labour, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 7 of the Industrial Disputes banking companies also in the reference to this Tribunal, included such other banking companies Act, 1947 (Act XIV of 1947), and in supersession of their Notification No.