#Industrial Tribunal

Delhi HC set aside the 2005 Industrial Tribunal award that regularised a DTC driver, holding that mere continuity of service does not create a right to regularisation. The decision means employers need a statutory basis, not just tenure, to regularise temporary staff, affecting public-sector transport bodies and their workmen.

Karnataka HC ruled writ petitions against private unions to restrain strikes during conciliation are not maintainable. Employers may seek limited relief before Industrial Tribunals under Section 62(1)(d) to enforce statutory strike prohibitions. The ruling clarifies alternate remedies for employers facing illegal strikes during conciliation.

Bombay High Court ruled that employees absent without authorization during a transfer period are not entitled to wages, reinforcing the 'no work no pay' principle. The judgment preserves continuity of service despite no interim stay, impacting employers and unions in transfer disputes under the Industrial Disputes Act.

The Bombay High Court affirmed contract workers performing identical duties as permanent employees are entitled to the minimum pay scale under Rule 25(2)(iv)(b) of the Maharashtra Rules and the CLRA Act. The Court restricted arrears payment to the dates of references to the Industrial Tribunal, limiting retrospective liability for employers.

Gauhati HC ruled that industrial tribunals cannot dismiss reference proceedings solely due to procedural delays, emphasizing the statutory duty to adjudicate disputes on merits. The judgment reinforces that employers cannot evade adjudication by exploiting delays, ensuring workers' rights to fair dispute resolution under labour laws.

Bombay High Court rules that Industrial Tribunals lack jurisdiction to conduct substantive reviews under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, confining them to procedural corrections only. The judgment quashes a review order that overturned an earlier permission granted to workmen, reinforcing statutory limits on tribunal powers.

The Karnataka High Court ruled that an Industrial Tribunal lacks jurisdiction to modify a minor disciplinary punishment unless there is proof of perversity or victimization. The judgment reinforces managerial autonomy in service discipline, limiting tribunal interference to cases of proven injustice.

The Karnataka High Court quashed an Industrial Tribunal award after a five-year unexplained delay in raising the dispute, holding that such laches render the reference non-maintainable under the Supreme Court’s Prabhakar ruling. This reinforces that procedural diligence is non-negotiable in labour disputes, affecting employers and workmen alike who delay invoking statutory remedies.

The Madras High Court held that civil courts lack jurisdiction over trade union disputes under the Industrial Relations Code 2020, effective from 21.11.2025, even if new tribunals are not yet constituted. Pending suits must be transferred to existing Industrial Tribunals, and interim injunctions granted by civil courts are void, impacting all ongoing and future trade union litigation.

Andhra Pradesh High Court clarifies that writ of certiorari under Article 226 cannot be issued based on surmises or lack of evidentiary basis; findings without evidence amount to error of law.