No regular jobs for staff recruited by service provider, rules High Court
Saurabh Malik/TNS
Chandigarh, October 9
In a significant judgment affecting employees hired by the Punjab Government through ``service providers'' , the Punjab and Haryana High Court has made it clear that they are not covered under the state government's policy for regularisation of service.
The significance of the judgment by Justice Surya Kant and Justice Surinder Gupta can be gauged from the fact that the Bench disposed of no less than 17 appeals filed by the employees hired through service providers.
In their appeals against the State of Punjab and other respondents, Nishan Singh and others appellants had earlier challenged a judgment passed by a Single Judge on February 28. The Judge had dismissed the writ petitions for regularisation of their services ``in view of the policy decision'' dated March 18, 2011, issued by the Punjab Government.
Engaged by a service provider, they were posted at the offices of Deputy Commissioners and Department of Excise and Taxation. Adjudicating the question whether employees engaged by any service provider were covered by the state policy of March 2011, the Single Judge ruled that the relationship of employer and employees did not exist between the government departments and the appellants. Taking up the appeal, the Bench asserted:
“The submissions that the appellants are employees engaged by the respondent departments and the service provider has been used as a camouflage to deny the appellants their status as government employees or consequent at regularisation under the government policy and other statutory benefit has no substance or legal basis...
“ The state has taken a policy decision for regularising the services of contractual employees who were appointed after fulfilling the eligibility criteria as per the procedure. In the case of appellants, neither were they selected under the Service Rules applicable to regular employees of Punjab, nor was there an advertisement issued by the state under which they applied for their engagement as regular or contractual employee of the state.
“It was the service provider who entered into an agreement with the state agency to provide workforce on certain terms and conditions. The service provider selected the candidates and supplied the same to the government department. A service provider is not an agency of the state to make recruitment against civil posts...”
Saurabh Malik/TNS
Chandigarh, October 9
In a significant judgment affecting employees hired by the Punjab Government through ``service providers'' , the Punjab and Haryana High Court has made it clear that they are not covered under the state government's policy for regularisation of service.
The significance of the judgment by Justice Surya Kant and Justice Surinder Gupta can be gauged from the fact that the Bench disposed of no less than 17 appeals filed by the employees hired through service providers.
In their appeals against the State of Punjab and other respondents, Nishan Singh and others appellants had earlier challenged a judgment passed by a Single Judge on February 28. The Judge had dismissed the writ petitions for regularisation of their services ``in view of the policy decision'' dated March 18, 2011, issued by the Punjab Government.
Engaged by a service provider, they were posted at the offices of Deputy Commissioners and Department of Excise and Taxation. Adjudicating the question whether employees engaged by any service provider were covered by the state policy of March 2011, the Single Judge ruled that the relationship of employer and employees did not exist between the government departments and the appellants. Taking up the appeal, the Bench asserted:
“The submissions that the appellants are employees engaged by the respondent departments and the service provider has been used as a camouflage to deny the appellants their status as government employees or consequent at regularisation under the government policy and other statutory benefit has no substance or legal basis...
“ The state has taken a policy decision for regularising the services of contractual employees who were appointed after fulfilling the eligibility criteria as per the procedure. In the case of appellants, neither were they selected under the Service Rules applicable to regular employees of Punjab, nor was there an advertisement issued by the state under which they applied for their engagement as regular or contractual employee of the state.
“It was the service provider who entered into an agreement with the state agency to provide workforce on certain terms and conditions. The service provider selected the candidates and supplied the same to the government department. A service provider is not an agency of the state to make recruitment against civil posts...”
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