COMMON WEALTH GAMES: CONSTRUCTION WORKERS’ LONG WAIT FOR JUSTICE

Readers may recall that in our issue of January - March 2009 we had first referred to the miserable plight of the construction workers, specifically those working in the Common Wealth Games related construction projects, and also mentioned that their case had been agitated by a number of civil society organizations, including Common Cause which had come together and formed a coalition. These organizations and activists collectively known as Common Wealth Games – Citizens for Workers, Women & Children (CWG-CWC) initiated a campaign for securing the rights of the construction workers in the following areas:

Construction Workers’ Welfare – the National Perspective

The generic issue of neglect of entitlements of construction workers had been agitated by the National Campaign Committee for Central Legislation on Construction Labour (NCC-CL) in the Supreme Court in Writ Petition No.318 of 2006. At the time of filing of this writ petition, Welfare Boards had been constituted only in a few states. As a result of the earlier orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, Welfare Boards have been constituted in almost all states and Union Territories. However, many of them have yet to become fully functional .It was brought to the notice of the Supreme Court that despite specific directions of the Court, the appropriate Governments had not discharged their statutory duties and functions, failed to collect the cess amounts due and distribute the benefits to the intended beneficiaries. Disposing of the contempt petition in this regard by its order dated 07.02.2012, the Court has segregated the defaulting states into three categories based on the extent of their defaults, issued specific directions for rectifying them and directed the respondents to file affidavits of compliance within four weeks.

The Court has also ordered that all the State Welfare Boards shall be subjected to audit by the CAG within two months and hold their meetings at least once in two months. The funds available with the Welfare Boards, which are not likely to be disbursed immediately, shall be properly invested with nationalised banks and shall not be utilised by the State governments for any other purpose. The Union of India has been asked to issue appropriate directions to all the State Governments to fully implement the provisions of the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act and the Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act. The Supreme Court has made it clear that failure to comply with their directions would invite fresh contempt proceedings.

Construction Workers : An Overview

According to the Construction Industrial Development Council (CIDC), there are at present an estimated 40 million construction workers in India. They belong to the most vulnerable section of India’s 369 million unorganised sector workers. Their work in the construction industry is characterised by its casual nature, temporary employeremployee relationship, uncertain working hours, and lack of even basic amenities and inadequacy of welfare facilities. Although they are covered by a range of beneficent and protective labour laws like the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, the Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation and Employment and Conditions and Service) Act, 1979, the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 etc, their living and working conditions remained deplorable and a need was felt to bring out a comprehensive legislation for their benefit. Thus, in 1996, the Government of India enacted two new laws: (i) The Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 and (ii) The Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Cess Act, 1996 aiming to regulate the employment and conditions of service of construction workers and also to provide for their safety, health and welfare. However, even after fifteen years of their enactment, even these welfare benefits have not started flowing to them in any appreciable measure.

• Ease of registration, through multiple mechanisms, and publicity about its benefits.

• Minimum packages of long term (for example, pension) and short term cash benefits (for example, scholarships).

• ‘Model practices’ at all CWG facility sites, minimum wage, safety, health, crèches, etc.

• Decent living conditions, access to ICDS, PDS, schools / crèches in off-site labour settlements.

• Adequate staff and systems to ensure implementation.

As a result of the initiatives taken by this coalition, the Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board (DBOCWWB) agreed to support, out of the Cess funds: (a) crèches at five locations (b) scholarships for registered worker’s children and (c) the mapping of the construction workers in Delhi to estimate the numbers of workers and identify their locations. This coalition organised a successful rally of construction workers on 11.11.2008.

In our issue of April – June 2010 we had brought out an update reporting on the PIL filed jointly by the Peoples Union for Democratic Rights, Nirmaan Mazdoor Panchayat Sangam and COMMON CAUSE and also reproduced the text of the petition and the order of the Delhi High Court constituting a Monitoring Committee. An executive summary of the report submitted by the Monitoring Committee was reproduced in that issue.

Subsequent developments were brought to our readers’ notice in our issue of July-September, 2010. The Delhi High Court had, vide their Order dated 26. 05. 2010 issued directions to the Labour Department and other authorities concerned for registration of all construction workers, issuing pass book to them and ensuring that they receive the benefits due to them. The High Court had given specific instructions in regard to the children’s education scheme, medical benefits, maternity benefits and death benefits.

When the matter came up for hearing on 07.07.2010 before the Court, it was apprised by the Counsel for the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) that the benefits given to the children of the workers studying in GNCTD schools had been extended to the children studying in 1744 MCD schools. The Counsel for the petitioners submitted that the education scheme for the children of workers had not been operationalized and that more than 10,000 applications for scholarships were pending. The Court directed the petitioners to furnish the list of such applications to the competent authority for immediate action.

The Court also ordered that all the pending applications for grant of medical, maternity and death benefits should be disposed of by the Welfare Board within 15 days and directed the GNCTD to constitute a committee of three officers for organizing camps to sensitize the workers about their rights as had been directed by it earlier.

Since our last update in the issue of July – September 2010, the High Court has considered the matter almost every month and passed important orders directing the authorities concerned to take certain specific actions.The Order dated 04.08.2010 covers registration, issuance of passbooks and provision of educational, health and maternity benefits and death compensation.

Subsequently, vide its order dated 01.09.2010, the Court directed that payments to construction workers should be made through ECS transfer as under NREGA,. It also directed that safety equipments and medical facilities be provided to the workers within one week. This direction was reiterated by the Court in its order dated 22.09.2010.

On 6.10.2010, the Court, after hearing the submissions with regard to the collapse of the foot over bridge and the accident pertaining to the DMRC directed the Regional Labour Commissioner to summon the contractors and, after enquiry, launch criminal prosecution against them in case of any violation of law.

In their order dated 10.11.2010, the Court directed the authorities concerned to find out the original addresses of the workers, who had left Delhi so that they may be given their entitlements. It also directed the Welfare Board to file an affidavit regarding the number of workers who had been provided with health and other benefits.

In the subsequent hearings held on 19.01.2011, 23.02.2011, 20.04.2011, 11.05.2011, 06.07.2011, 25.07.2011, 10.08.2011, 19.10.2011, 21.11.2011, 29.11.2011 and 09.01.2012 the Court has inter alia passed the following orders.

(i) The Welfare Board to devise a rational, logical and acceptable scheme to reach out to the workers and launch an awareness drive for the purpose of explaining the benefits due to them and also file the details of a holistic scheme in the matter before the Court within two weeks.

(ii) All the principal employers concerned to issue notice to the contractors to furnish the names and addresses of the workers engaged by them and their sub-contractors.

(iii) The Regional Labour Commissioner (Central) to inspect the construction sites along with a team including representatives of the petitioner organizations and file an affidavit regarding the correctness of the muster roll / attendance registers.

(iv) The Regional Labour Commissioner (Central) to appoint a nodal officer for coordination with the members of the unions of workers for facilitating participation in visits to the construction sites.

(v) The Assistant Labour Commissioner to visit construction sites and take appropriate action for grant of compensation and initiate penal action in cases of non-payment of statutory minimum wages.

(vi) Initiate action for registration of workers whose applications are pending.

(vii) Organise camps at different sites to sensitise the workers about their rights and entitlements. (viii) Emulating the example of the DMRC, all principal employers to incorporate a clause in the agreement with the contractors that the latter are liable for registration of all the workers as per the law.

(ix) The competent authority to ensure that the Secretary of the Welfare Board is not transferred prematurely as such a step jeopardises the functioning of the Board.

(x) The GNCTD/PWD to ensure that adequate compensation is paid by the contractor to the three workers who were seriously injured in the Foot Over Bridge accident near Jawahar Lal Nehru stadium.

The matter has been posted for further hearing on 20.03.2012.

 

October – December, 2011