Should a Bus Driver Be Included in the Muster Roll on a Construction Site?

In a small construction site, a contractor is using a hired bus with a driver to transport workers and other staff from the labor hut to the working premises. Should he include the driver of the bus in the muster roll of workers?

Regards,
Sandeep Rai

Dear Sir, please reply as the bus driver is fully engaged with the services of the contractor. Also, should watch and ward (security personnel) be included in the muster roll or not?

Regards,
Sandeep Rai

If the payment for the service is made to the transporter based on the services undertaken, there is no need to include the driver or other crew members in the muster rolls of the construction company, as it is a contract for service. At the same time, if the arrangement involves filling fuel, handling repairs and servicing, and paying the wages of the driver/crew, then the provisions of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act will apply, and you will have to keep a register of the driver/crew engaged.

Regards,
Madhu.T.K

I am in total agreement with the point expressed by Madhu that the above transportation arrangement constitutes a contract for services, as the questioner has clearly stated that the bus is hired with the driver. It is a common practice in the transport industry for the charges paid to the transport operator to be calculated based on the number of hours the vehicle is used and the distance traveled per kilometer, in addition to the driver's batta and wages. Alternatively, the charges may be based on the number of hours the vehicle is used, along with the driver's proportionate batta and wages. In the latter case, the fuel costs are entirely covered by the hirer on an actual basis.

Respected Madhu ji,

I have not understood it. Can you please elaborate?

In the present case, it is the service that the company is buying, and it is not like the driver alone is doing it for the company and the company is paying for the work done by the employee (driver). That is why I have also written that if the arrangement was to hire a bus and fill the fuel and pay the crew their wages, there would have been an employer-employee relationship, and CLRA would have been applicable. Here it is like we hire a taxi or rickshaw and pay for the service. We are actually buying their service (since the product they sell is not tangible, we refer to it as a service), and the relationship we have with the service providers, the travel agency, is just like a buyer and seller.

Regards,
Madhu.T.K

Dear Sir, One more question which I have already mentioned: whether security personnel (if hired through another agency) will be covered under CLRA. I have read in one state amendment from Andhra Pradesh where they have mentioned that watch and ward services are not "core activity of the establishment."

Regards,
Sandeep

Yes, if you are hiring the services of more than 19 persons (the government plans to raise it to 49) through a contractor, then the CLRA Act will be applicable.

Regards,
Varghese Mathew