Telangana High Court: Employer must take care of staff
The state, being a welfare one, cannot act like Shylock, and turn a Nelson’s eye to the plight of its employees or their families.
Hyderabad: Expressing concern over the protection given to employees and their families, the Telangana High Court said that it was the cardinal duty of the employer to not just protect and promote an employee while he is working but also to protect his interests and those of his family if the employee does not survive.
A division bench comprising acting CJ R.S. Chauhan and Justice A. Rajasheker Reddy was dealing with a petition by railway authorities which sought to set aside the orders of the Central Administrative Tribu-nal (CAT) directing the railways to consider the request of Rukmini Bai, widow of railway employee P. Digambar, for compassionate recruitment, or examine the scope of providing suitable compensation to the applicant within a period of 90 days.
Digambar worked as a trackman for 26 years. With 10 years of service left to go, he was murdered in 2009. His wife approached the railways for the appointment on compassionate grounds. Since her application didn’t elicit any respon-se, she filed an application before the tribunal, which directed the railways to consider her re-presentation in 90 days.
While directing the railways to grant suitable compensation in a larger perspective to the family of its former employee, the bench said, “Needless to say, the railways being a facet of the state has to be a role model employer. A certain amount of generosity is expected. The state, being a welfare one, cannot act like Shylock, and turn a Nelson’s eye to the plight of its employees or their families.”