Page 9 - DMGT306_MERCANTILE_LAWS_II

Mercantile Laws – II

Notes  Workers’ participation in safety management

 Right of workers to warn about imminent danger.
The new schedules, inserted before the Schedule to the Principal Act, include the list of industries
involving hazardous processes and permissible levels of certain chemical substances in the
working environment.
All the provisions of the Factories (Amendment) Act, 1987 came into force with effect from 1st
December, 1987 except the Schedule containing list of notifiable diseases and Sections 7-13 and
41-F which came into force with effect from 1st June, 1983.

1.1.1 Object of the Act

The object of the Act is to protect human beings from being subject to unduly long hours of
bodily strain or manual labour. It also seeks to provide that employees should work in healthy
and sanitary conditions so far as the manufacturing process will allow and that precautions
should be taken for their safety and for the prevention of accidents.

1.1.2 Scope and Applicability of the Act

The Act extends to whole of India. It applies to all factories including factories belonging to
Central or any State Government unless otherwise excluded. The benefits of this Act are available
to persons who are employed in the factory and be covered within the meaning of the term
“worker” as defined in the Act. It would, therefore, be desirable to discuss the meaning and
definition of the term “factory” and “worker”. Since the term “factory” refers to manufacturing
process, it would be helpful to know the meaning of the term “manufacturing process” as
defined by the Act.



Caselet Indian Oil Corporation vs. Chief Inspector of
Factories

n Indian Oil Corporation vs. Chief Inspector of Factories [1998(4) Scale 116], it was
observed that it is the Government which looks after the successful implementation of
Ithe Factories Act and, therefore, it is not likely to evade its implementation. That
appears to be the reason why the legislature thought it fit to make a separate provision for
the Government and local authorities, and so on. The legislature has provided that in the
case of a factory owned or controlled by any of these authorities the person or persons
appointed to manage the affairs of the factory shall be deemed to be the occupier. Therefore,
if it is a case of a factory, in fact and in reality, owned or controlled by the Central
Government or other authority, the person or persons appointed to manage the affairs of
the factory shall have to be deemed to be the occupier even though for better management
of such a factory, a corporate form is adopted by the Government.

It was held in the case that the relevant provisions regarding the establishment of the
appellant corporation and its working leave no doubt that the “ultimate control” over all
the affairs of the corporation, including opening and running of the factories, is with the
Central Government. Acting through the corporation is only a method employed by the
Central Government for running its petroleum industry. In the context of Sec. 2(n), it will
have to be held that all the Activities of the corporation a re really carried on by the
Central Government with a corporate mask.
Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.in/2000/01/10/stories/211001ak.htm

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