Nature of work performed and not label assigned to worker should determine employment status

Jaggo Vs Union of India & Ors. (Supreme Court of India)

Supreme Court held that hiring temporary employee as a means of avoiding payment of employee benefits is unjustifiable since the nature of the work performed, rather than the label assigned to the worker, should determine employment status and the corresponding rights and benefits.

Facts- The appellants before this Court were originally engaged by the Central Water Commission on part-time, ad-hoc terms. Applicant No.1 was appointed as a Safaiwali in 1993, Applicant No.2 as a Safaiwali in 1998, and Applicant No.3 as a Safaiwali in 1999. All three were primarily responsible for cleaning and maintaining the office premises under the CWC. Applicant No.5, appointed in 2004 as a Khallasi was entrusted with tasks such as gardening, dusting, and other ancillary maintenance work. Throughout their engagement, these individuals performed essential housekeeping and support functions at CWC establishments, including its offices at Faridabad, ensuring daily upkeep and contributing to the smooth functioning of the Commission’s administrative operations.

Initially, the appellants sought regularization of their services by filing Original Application No.2211/2015 before the Tribunal. They contended that over the years, their roles and responsibilities had evolved beyond the nominal labels of “part-time” or “contractual” and that they were performing ongoing and core functions integral to the CWC’s operations. They relied on applicable government instructions and the principle that long-serving employees, engaged against work of a perennial nature, deserve fair consideration for regularization, provided their appointments were not illegal or clandestine.