To supplement Mr. Madhu’s answer, let me put the legal position in different way,
- To determine if a contract worker falls under the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, we need to check the definition of "Workman" under the act.
- The definition of "Workman" in the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act is borrowed from Section 2(s) of the Industrial Disputes Act.
- According to Section 2(s) of the Industrial Disputes Act, a contract worker is not a "Workman" for the principal employer.
- Therefore, a contract worker of a principal employer is not covered by the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act.
- However, the contract worker may be considered a "Workman" for their employer (the contractor). Thereby the Standing Order Act would applies to him with the limit to his employment with his employer (the contractor).