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PETITIONER: MUNICIPAL COUNCIL  HATTA

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: BHAGAT SINGH & ORS.

DATE OF JUDGMENT:       05/02/1998

BENCH: SUJATA MANMOHAR, D.P. WADHWA

ACT:

HEADNOTE:

JUDGMENT:                THE 5TH DAY OF FEBRUARY, 1998 Present:               Hon’ble Mrs. Justice Sujata V. Manohar               Hon’ble Mr. Justice D.P. Wadhwa Ashok K.  Singh, Adv.  for  S.K.  Agnihotri,  Adv.  for  the appellant Amitabh  Verma,   Adv.  for   Ashok  Mathur,  Adv.  for  the Respondents.                          O R D E R The following order of the Court was delivered:      The respondents,  who are  Moharrirs/peons working with the appellant Municipal Council, Hatta, filed an application under Section  22 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, before the Competent Authority  (Labour Court)  under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948  for payment  of overtime  on the ground that they were  working   for  4   additional  hours  everyday.  Their application for  the  period  1.2.82  to  31.3.83  has  been allowed and  the  writ  Petition  which  was  filed  by  the appellant before the High Court has been dismissed.      The respondents  who are  employees  of  the  appellant Municipal Council  are governed  by the provisions of Madhya Pradesh Municipalities  Act, 1961.  Under Section  95 of the Madhya Pradesh  Municipalities Act,  the State Government is entitled, inter  alia, to  make rules in respect of scale of pay and  all allowances  by whatever  name called  an  other service conditions  of Municipal  Employees. Pursuant to the power so  vested,  the  Madhya  Pradesh  Municipal  Services (Scales of  Pay  and  Allowances)  Rules,  1997,  have  been framed. The pay scale of Moharrirs is fixed at Rs. 70-2-80-2 1/2-100-EB-4-120. There  is no  provision under  these Rules for payment of any overtime allowance.      The respondents  contended that  they would be entitled to overtime  under the  Minimum Wages Act, 1948 by Virtue of Section 14  of the said Act. According to them, service with Local Authority  is one  of the  employment covered  by  the Minimum Wages   Act,  1948. Now, the minimum wages which are prescribed under  the Minimum Wages Act. 1948 which would be applicable to  the  respondents  are  Rs.  50/-  per  month. Admittedly, the  respondents  re  getting  wages  above  the minimum wages  prescribed under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.

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The short  question is  whether Section  14 of  the  Minimum Wages Act,  1948 would  apply to such persons. Section 14(1) which is relevant for the present purposes is as follow:      Section 14      "Overtime - (1) Where as employee.,      whose  minimum  rate  of  wages  is      fixed under  this Act  by the hour.      by the day or by such a longer wage      period as  may be prescribed, works      on any  day in excess of the number      of  hours   constituting  a  normal      working day, the employer shall pay      him for  every hour  or for part of      an hour  so worked in excess at the      overtime rate  fixed under this Act      or under any law of the appropriate      Government for  the time  being  in      force, whichever is higher."      There is also an amendment to section 14 by addition of sub-section (1a)  under the  Minimum Wages  (Madhya  Pradesh Amendment and  Validation) Act,  1961 being  Act 23 of 1961. Sub-section (1a)  which is  inserted in  Section 14 entitles the State  Government by  Notification to  fix the limit for overtime work  in a  Scheduled employment. This provision is not directly  relevant. To  claim overtime under Section 14, the following  conditions must  be fulfilled  by an employee (1) the  minimum rate  of wages  should be  fixed under  the Minimum Wages  Act, 1948;  and (2)  such an  employee should work  on   any  day   in  excess  of  the  number  of  hours constituting a normal working day. Therefore, overtime under Section 14  is payable  to those employees who are getting a minimum rate  of wage  as prescribed under the Minimum wages Act, 1948.  These are  the only  employees to  whom overtime under Section  14 would  become payable. In the present case the respondents  cannot be  described as  employees who  are getting a  minimum rate  of wages  fixed under  the  Minimum Wages Act,  1948. They  are getting  much more  and that too under the  Madhya Pradesh  Municipal Service  (Scales of Pay and Allowances)  Rules, 1967.  Therefore, Section  14 has no application to  them. We  have  not  been  shown  any  other provision under which they can claim overtime.      The application  under Section  22 of the Minimum Wages Act, is,  therefore, misconceived.  The respondents  seem to have proceeded  on the  basis that  because employment under any Local  Authority is  listed as Item 6 in the Schedule to the Minimum  Wages Act,  1948 they  would automatically  get overtime under  the said  Act. Section  14, however, clearly provides for payment of overtime only to those employees who are getting  minimum rate  of wage   under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.  It does  not apply to those getting better wages under other statutory Rules.      The appeal  is, therefore,  allowed  and  the  impugned order of  the High  Court as well as the competent Authority under the  Minimum wages  1948  is  set  aside.  There  will however, be no order as to costs.