Majithia Wage Board: Supreme Court suggests interim pay

The Supreme Court on Friday decided to hear from January 8, 2013 for final disposal petitions challenging the Majithia Wage Boards’ recommendations for journalists and non-journalists and asked managements to consider additional payments in the interim.
A number of media organisations have challenged before the Supreme Court the recommendations of the wage boards notified by the Union Government on November 11, 2011. They have also sought a stay of the notification.

When the matter came up in the court on Friday a bench of justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Prasad Desai suggested that the managements should show some “large heartedness” and give a serious though to making additional payments in the interim.

The bench asked senior counsel Fali Nariman, who was appearing for some media houses, to consider these suggestions and get back with the response of the managements by October 8, 2012 when it will pass a direction.

While Mr. Nariman was making his submissions, the bench told him that without passing any order it wants to know whether the media houses “could do something” for the employees during pendency of the petitions.

“Without any order we want to know, can you do something,” the bench asked the senior counsel.

“We have made a suggestion to Mr. Nariman. He will get back to us within a week or two,” it said.

When Mr. Nariman sought further time to respond to the counter affidavits filed by the employee unions and the Union Government, senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, appearing for the employees, said that without any delay the hearings should be started.

He submitted that the court should allow full and immediate implementation of the wage boards subject to the outcome of the pending writ petitions.

Senior counsel M.N. Krishnamani told the bench that for the past 13 years there was no wage revision for the suffering employees and it was imperative that some arrangement be granted immediately

Source : PTI