Should Occupational Health Center Staff Be Contractual or Permanent? Let's Discuss the Impact of Recent Supreme Court Ruling

Occupational Health Center Staffing: Contractual or Permanent?

Whether the Occupational Health Center's Staff Nurse and Factory Medical Officer posts should be on a contractual role or a permanent role as per industrial law?

Supreme Court Judgment on Worker Classification

Recently, on 13th March 2024, the Supreme Court gave a judgment in one case stating that "Workers Employed To Perform Perennial/Permanent Nature Of Work Can't Be Treated As Contractual Workers." The Supreme Court also observed that workers employed to perform perennial/permanent nature of work couldn't be treated as contract workers under the Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970, to deny them the benefit of regularization of a job.

In the case of industry. (Reference: https://www.livelaw.in/supreme-court...isation-252130)

Supreme Court Judgment on Contractual Employment

The Supreme Court judgment you referred to addresses the engagement of employees in regular work through a contractor. In the case of a staff nurse, this applies if the nurse is under a third-party payroll, receiving a salary from that third-party agency, but working in the health center. Therefore, a staff nurse whose work is of a perennial nature cannot be engaged through an agency or contractor. Similarly, a Doctor or Medical Officer appointed through an agency will be invalidated.

At the same time, if the staff nurse or medical officer is appointed by the Health Center or the Factory management itself on a fixed-term contract, it is legally sustainable. In this scenario, the employee-employer relationship is direct, and the salary is paid directly by the health center/factory. The status is akin to any other regular employee of the health center/factory, with the distinction that the employment is for a predetermined period, upon the expiration of which the employee-employer relationship would automatically cease. In this setup, the respective employee should receive all statutory payments and contributions directly from the employer.

@Madhu T K

I can't clearly understand what you want to say. My simple question is: Can a company legally hire FMO/nursing staff on third-party contractual jobs? This is because OHC staff work is permanent in nature.

You had quoted a Supreme Court verdict, and that is why I said if the nurse is appointed through a contractor/third party role, the dictum of the case will apply to them. That is, no nurse nor medical officer can be engaged through a contractor. I repeat the sentence I have used: "In the case of a staff nurse, it will apply if the nurse is under third-party payrolls, getting a salary from that third-party agency, but working in the health center. As such, a staff nurse whose work is of a perennial nature cannot be engaged through an agency or contractor."

Why the confusion? I don't understand which part of the reply you did not understand. It is very clear: since the work of a staff nurse is perennial in nature, no such engagement through a third-party role can be legal. The appropriate authority can take action and abolish the engagement.

If you are the owner of a factory, you can hire a nurse or doctor on a contract basis in your factory, but you cannot hire them from a third party.