Karnataka High Court Holds That Persons Holding Managerial Or Supervisory Roles Are Not ‘Workmen’ Under The ID Act.

In W.P. No. 49982/2018, the applicant was working as an executive secretary but her employment was terminated so she raised a dispute in labour court. The point of contention was whether she would be classified as a ‘workman’ within the scope of Section 2(s) of the ID Act. The labour court observed that the applicant qualifies as workman pursuant to ID Act and the court directed the respondent to pay Rs 5,00,000/- as compensation and directed to reinstate her. The applicant filed a writ petition in the Hon’ble Karnataka High Court for claiming higher compensation and the respondent also filed a writ petition in the High Court against the ruling of the labour court. The High Court observed that from the appointment letter and the applicant’s resume, it was evident that her responsibilities included assisting the Chairman, Managing Director and Director in their day-to-day tasks. The High Court observed that the applicant had an experience of 17 years in secretarial assistance before joining the respondent, which influenced her appointment. The High Court concluded that the duty of the applicant is more closely with that of a manager and is not within the scope of workman as per the provisions of ID Act. The respondent’s writ petition was allowed, and the order passed by the labour court was set aside.