An Act to consolidate and amend the
laws relating to employment of workers, relations between workers and employers
determination of minimum wages, payment of wages, compensation for injuries
arising out of and in the course of employment formation of trade unions,
raising and settlement of industrial disputes, health safety, welfare and
working conditions of workers and apprenticeship and matters connected therewith
Or related.
LABOUR COURT AND
LABOUR APPELLATE TRIBUNAL
The basic idea underlying the provisions of the
Bangladesh Labour Code is to settle’ industrial
disputes and to promote industrial peace and to establish a harmonious and cordial relationship between labour and capital by
means of conciliation, mediation and adjudication.
With this end in view different authorities have been created under the Code to resolve an industrial dispute. . When
voluntary settlement machinery fails to solve disputes and the last
resort is taken through judicial adjudication. And for judicial adjudication two authorities have been created
under the Code. They are the Labour Court
and the Labour Appellate Tribunal
Application to Labour Court- Any collective bargaining agent or any employer or
worker may apply to the Labour Court for
the enforcement of any right guaranteed or secured to it or him by or under
this Code or any award or settlement or contract.
Application to the Labour Court:
An industrial
dispute may be referred to the Labour Court in any of the following ways:
(i)
If no settlement is arrived by way of conciliation and the parties agree
not to refer the dispute to an arbitrator, the workers may go on strike or the
employer may declare
lock-out. However, the parties at dispute may, either before or after the commencement of a strike or lock out,
make joint application to the Labour
Court for adjudication of the matter.
(ii) Again, if a strike or lock-out lasts for
more than 30 days the government may
prohibit
such strike or lock-out and in that case the government must refer the
dispute
to the Labour Court.
(iii)
Again, under section 213 any collective bargaining agent or any employer
or workman may apply to
the Labour. Court for the enforcement of any right guaranteed or secured to it
or him by or under any law or any award settlement.
Labour Court. – (1) For the
purpose of this Code, the Government may, by notification in the Official
Gazette, establish as many Labour Courts as it considers necessary.
(2) Where more than one Labour Court is
established -under subsection (1), the Government shall specify in the
notification the territorial
limits within which each one of them shall exercise jurisdiction under this Code.
(3) A Labour
Court shall consist of a Chairman and two members
to advise him, however, in the case of trial of an offence or adjudication of any matter under Chapter Ten and Twelve it
shall consist of the Chairman alone.
(4) The Chairman of the Labour Court
shall be appointed by the Government from amongst the sitting District. Judges
or Additional District Judges.
(5) The conditions of employment of the
Chairman and Members of the Labour Court shall be determined by the Government.
(6) Among the two Members of the Labour Court one is to represent the
employers and the other to represent the workers, and they will be
appointed in the manner provided in sub-section (9).
(7) The Government shall constitute, in the
prescribed manner, by notification in the official Gazette, two panels of
Members, one of which shall bear the names of six representatives of employers and the other site.
representatives of workers.
(8) The
Government shall reconstitute the panels prepared under
sub-section (7) after every two years, but the Members of
the panels, notwithstanding the expiry of the said period of
two years, shall continue on the panels till the new panels are
constituted and notified in the official
Gazette.
(9) The Chairman shall, for
hearing or adjudication of a specific industrial dispute, select one
representative from each of the two panels constituted under sub-section
(7), and the representatives so selected, together with the Chairman, shall be deemed to have
constituted the Labour Court in respect of
that specific industrial dispute:
Provided that the Chairman may select any Member
from either of the panels as a Member of the Labour Court in respect of more than one case
pending before the Labour Court.
(10) A Labour Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction
on the following matters, namely:-
(a)
To adjudicate and determine an industrial dispute which has been referred to or brought
before it under this Code;
(b) To
enquire into and adjudicate any matter relating to the implementation
or violation of a settlement which is referred to it by the Government;
(c) To try offences under this
Code; and
(d) To exercise and perform such other powers
and functions as are or may be conferred
upon or assigned to it by or under this Code or any other law.
(11) If any Member of the Labour Court
is. absent from or is otherwise unable to attend, any sitting of the Court, be
such absence or inability at the commencement of or during the hearing of a
case, the proceedings of the Court may be commenced or continued, as the case may
be, and the decision or award may be given in the absence of such
Member; and no act, proceedings, decision or award of the Court shall be
invalid or be called in question before any court merely on the ground of such absence,
or on the ground of any vacancy in, or any
defect in the constitution of the Labour Court.
Provided that if a Member of the Court informs the
Chairman earlier as to his absence in a particular case, the Chairman shall nominate another
Member from the list of the party concerned:
Provided further that the opinion expressed by
Members of both the parties must be mentioned in the judgment of a case.
(12) The provisions contained in Chapter Thirty
five of the Code of Criminal Procedure shall apply to the Labour Court,
and for the purpose of that Chapter the Labour Court shall be deemed to be a Civil Court.
(13) All
Labour Courts shall be subordinate to the Labour Appellate Tribunal.
Qualification: A person shall not be qualified for
appointment as Chairman unless he is a
District
Judge or an Additional District Judge.
Jurisdiction of the Labour court or Procedure
and powers of Labour Court in trying offences.- (1) Subject to
the provisions of this Code, a Labour Court shall, while trying an offence,
follow as nearly as possible summary procedure as prescribed under the Code
of Criminal Procedure.
(2) A labour Court shall, for the purpose of trying
an offence under the Code, have the same powers as are vested in the Court of a
Magistrate of the first-class under the Code of Criminal Procedure.
(3) Notwithstanding anything contained
in sub-section (2), the Labour Court shall, for the purpose of inflicting
punishment, have the same powers as are vested in Court of Sessions under
that Code.
(4) A Labour Court shall, while trying
an offence, hear the case without the members.
Procedure and powers of Labour Court in any matter other than trial
of offences.- (1) A Labour Court shall, for the purpose of
adjudicating and determining any matter, question or dispute except
any offence under this Code, be deemed to be a Civil Court and shall
have the same powers as are vested in such Court under the Code of Civil Procedure
including the powers of-
(a) Enforcing
the attendance of any person, examining him on
oath
and taking evidence
(b) compelling the production of documents and material
object;
(c) issuing commissions for the
examination of witnesses or documents;
(d) delivering ex pane decision in the event of failure of any party to appear
before the court;
(e) setting aside exparte
decision;
(f) setting
aside order of dismissal made for non-appearance of
any
party;
(g) issuing interim orders on any party
to prevent frustration of the purpose of a case.
(2) Subject to this Code, no court-fee shall be
payable for filing, exhibiting or recording any document in, or obtaining any
document from a Labour Court.
(3) The Labour Court shall, within not more than ten
days of institution of a case, direct the opposite party, through the process server or
special bearer or registered post or both, to Submit its written
statement or objections.
(4) The Labour Court may, for reasons recorded in writing, extend such time for not more than seven days in
all.
(5) If the opposite party fails to submit any
written statement or objection within the time specified in the notice or the
extended time, the case shall be hared and disposed of ex parte.
(6) The Labour Court shall not adjourn the hearing
of any case on the prayer of any party for more than seven days in all:
Provided that
if both the parties apply for adjournment, an adjournment
for not more than ten days in all may be allowed.-
(7) If the party filing the case is
absent on the date of hearing, the case shall be dismissed for default:
Provided that the Court
shall have the jurisdiction to set aside the dismissal order on the application
of the petitioner within three months of the order of dismissal.
(8) If the opposite party is absent on
the date of hearing,, the case shall be heard and disposed of ex-parte.
(9) The dismissal of a case shall not
bar the institution of a fresh case on the same cause of action unless it is barred
for arty other ; reasons afld instituted after three months of the
dismissal.
(10) ) The Labour Court may, on an
application filed by all the parties to a case, and after giving a hearing to them, allow the withdrawal of the case at any stage of the
proceedings thereof, if it is satisfied
that the dispute has been amicably resolved.
(11) An award, decision or judgment of
a Labour Court shall be given in writing and delivered in open Court. and a copy
thereof; shall be given to each party.
(12) An award, decision or judgment of a Labour
Court shall, in every case, be delivered, unless the parties to. the
dispute give their consent
in writing to extend the time-limit, within sixty days following the date of filing of the case:
Provided that no award,
decision or judgment of a Labour Court shall be invalid merely on the ground of
delay in its delivery.
Appeal
against judgment etc. of
Labour Court–
Subject to this Code, any party aggrieved by an award,
decision or judgment of the Labour Court, may prefer an appeal to the Labour Appellate
Tribunal within sixty days of the delivery thereof and the decision of the
Tribunal in such appeal shall be
APPELLATE TRIBUNAL
“Tribunal”
means Labour Appellate Tribunal Constituted under this code.
Constitution: (1) For the
purpose of this Code, there shall be a Labour Appellate Tribunal in
Bangladesh consisting of a Chairman, or, if the Government deems fit, of a Chairman and such number of Members
as determined by the Government.
(2) The Chairman and the Members, if any, of the
Tribunal shall be appointed by the Government, by notification in the
Official Gazette on such
terms and conditions as the Government may
determine. .
(3) The Chairman of the Tribunal shall be from
amongst person who is or has been a Judge or an Additional Judge of the
Supreme Court and a Member thereof shall be from amongst person who is or has been a
Judge or an Additional Judge of the Supreme Court or is or has been a
District Judge for at least three years.
(4) If the Chairman is absent or unable to discharge
his functions for any reason, the senior Member of the Tribunal, if any, shall discharge the
functions of the Chairman.
(5) Where members are appointed on the Tribunal, The
Chairman
may, for the efficient performance of the functions of the Tribunal,
constitute as many Benches of the Tribunal, consisting of one or more
members of the Tribunal, including himself, where necessary, as he
may deem fit.
(6) An appeal or any matter before the
Tribunal may be heard and disposed of by the Tribunal sitting as a whole or by
any Bench thereof.
(7) Subject to this Code, the Tribunal
shall follow as nearly as possible such procedure as are prescribed under the
Code of Civil Procedure, for hearing of an appeal by an appellate Court from original
decrees.
(8) If the Members of a Bench are
divided in their opinion as to the decision to be given on any point—
(a) the same shall be decided according
to the opinion of the majority, if any; and
(b) if the Members of the Bench are equally divided, they shall state the
point on which they differ and the case shall be referred by them to the
Chairman for hearing on such point by the Chairman himself, if he is
not a Member of the Bench, or by one
or more of the other Members of the Tribunal, and such point shall be decided according to the opinion of the Chairman
or Member or majority of the Members hearing the
point, as the case may be.
(9) Where a Bench includes the Chairman of the
Tribunal as one of its
Members and there is a difference of opinion among the Members and the Members are equally divided, the decision of the Chairman
shall prevail and the decision of the Bench shall be expressed in terms of the opinion of the Chairman.
(10) The Tribunal may, on appeal, confirm, set
aside, vary or modify the award, decision, judgment or sentence given
by the \ Labour Court or remand a case and shall, save otherwise
provided, exercise all the powers conferred by this Code on the Labour Court.
(11) The judgment of the Tribunal shall be
delivered within a period of not more than 60 days following the filing of
the appeal;
Provided that no such judgment shall be rendered
invalid by reason only of any delay in its delivery.
(12) The Tribunal shall have authority to punish
for contempt of its authority, or that of any Labour Court, as if it were
a High Court Division of the Supreme Court.
(13) Any person convicted and sentenced by the
Tribunal under sub-section (12) to imprisonment for any period, or to
pay a fine exceeding two hundred Taka, may prefer an appeal to the High Court Division.
(14) The Tribunal may, on its own motion
or on the application of any party, transfer a case from one Labour Court to
another.
(15) The Tribunal shall have superintendence
and control over
all
Labour Courts. . .
Form of application or appeal.- An application
to a Labour
Court and an appeal to the Tribunal may be made in such form and shall be accompanied by such
fee, if any, as may be prescribed, and shall
contain, in addition to any particulars which may be prescribed, the following particulars, namely:
(a) the name and
address of the parties;
(b) a
concise statement of the circumstances in which
the application is made and the
relief or order
which the applicant claims;
(c) the provision of any law under
which the application is made or the relief or order prayed for;
(d)
in the case of a delay in making the application or appeal, the reason for such delay and the provision of any law under which condonation
of delay is claimed;
(e) in a case under Chapter X, a
clear statement showing separately the basic wages and dearness allowance or
adhoc or interim pay, if any, payable to
the claimant per month and other sums payable
as part of wages;
(f) in the case of a claim under Chapter XII for compensation against an employer, the date of service of notice of the accident on the employer
and, if such notice has not been
served or has not-been served in due time, the reason for such omission;
dependants for
compensation under Chapter XII, in
any case there under a concise statement of the matters on which agreement has and of those on which agreement has not been come to;
(h) the date on which cause of action
has arisen; and
(i) a statement showing
the Labour Court has jurisdiction to entertain the
application.
Jurisdiction and
Power of the Labour Appellate Tribunal:
(1) The
tribunal may, on appeal, confirm, set aside, vary or modify the award given by a
Labour Court, and shall exercise all the powers conferred by this Code on the
Court, save as otherwise provided (section 218(10)).
(2) The
decision of the Tribunal shall be delivered as expeditiously as possible,
within a period of 60 days following the filing of the appeal; however, such decision shall
not be rendered invalid by reason of any delay in its delivery.
(3)
The Tribunal shall have authority to punish for contempt of its
authority, or that of any
Labour Court subject to its appellate jurisdiction, as if it were a High Court
Division of the Supreme Court.
(4)
When an appeal in respect of any matter arising out of an industrial
dispute is preferred to
a Tribunal under section 217, the Tribunal may, by an order in writing prohibit continuance of any strike or
lock-out in pursuance of such industrial
dispute which had already commenced and was in existence on the date on which the appeal was preferred.
Prohibition
on serving notice of strike or lock-out while
proceedings pending.- No notice of
strike or lock-out shall be served by either party to an industrial dispute on the
other party while any conciliation proceeding or proceedings before
the Labour Court or appeal before the
Tribunal are or is pending in respect of ^ any matter constituting such industrial dispute.