Objective is that the object of the Act is to have uniform Standing Orders providing for the matters enumerated in the Schedule to the Act, that it was not intended that there should be different conditions of service for those who are employed before and those employed after the Standing Orders came into force and finally, once the Standing Orders come into the force, they bind all those presently in the employment of the concerned establishment as well as those who are appointed thereafter.
Section 3. Submission of draft standing orders
(1) Within six months from the date on which this Act becomes applicable to an industrial establishment, the employer shall submit to the Certifying Officer five copies of the draft standing orders proposed by him for adoption in this industrial establishment.
(2) Provision shall be made in such draft for every matter set out in the Schedule which may be applicable to the industrial establishment, and where Model standing orders have been prescribed shall be, so far as is practicable, in conformity with such model.
Section 4. Conditions for certification of standing orders
Standing orders shall be certifiable under this Act if–
(a) provision is made therein for every matter set out in the Schedule which is applicable to the industrial establishment, and
(b) the standing orders are otherwise in conformity with the provisions of this Act ; and it shall be the function] of the Certifying Officer or appellate authority to adjudicate upon the fairness or reasonableness of the provisions of any standing orders.
Section 5. Certification of standing orders
(1) On receipt of the draft under Section3, the Certifying Officer shall forward a copy thereof to the trade union, if any, of the workmen, or where there is no such trade union, if any, of the workmen or where there is no trade union, to the workmen in such manner as may be prescribed, together with a notice in the prescribed form requiring objections, if any, which the workmen may desire to make to the draft standing orders to be submitted to him within fifteen days from the receipt of the notice.
(2) The Certifying Officer shall thereupon certify the draft standing orders, after making any modifications there in which his order under sub-section (2) may require, and shall within seven days thereafter send copies of the certified standing orders authenticated in the prescribed manner and of his order under sub-section (2) to the employer and to the trade union or other prescribed representatives of the workmen.
Section 6. Appeals
Any employer, workmen, trade union or other prescribed representatives of the workmen] aggrieved by the order of the Certifying Officer under sub-section (2) of Section 5 may, within 19 [thirty days] from the date on which copies are sent under sub-section (3) of that section, appeal to the appellate authority, and the appellate authority, whose decision shall be final, shall by order in writing confirm the standing orders either in the form certified by the Certifying Officer or after amending the said standing orders by making such modifications thereof or additions there to as it thinks necessary to render the standing orders certifiable under this Act.
Section 7. Date of operation of standing orders
Standing orders shall, unless an appeal is preferred under Section 6, come into operation on the expiry of thirty days from the date on which authenticated copies thereof are sent under sub-section (3) of Section 5, or where an appeal as aforesaid is preferred, on the expiry of seven days from the date on which copies of the order of the appellate authority are sent under sub-section (2) of Section 6.
Section 8. Register of standing orders
A copy of all standing orders as finally certified under this Act shall be filed by the Certifying Officer in a register in the prescribed form maintained for the purpose, and the Certifying Officer shall furnish a copy there of to any person applying there for on payment of the prescribed fee.
Section 9. Posting of standing orders
The text of the standing orders as finally certified under this Act shall be prominently posted by the employer in English and in the language understood by the majority of his workmen on special boards to be maintained for the purpose at or near the entrance through which the majority of the workmen enter the industrial establishment and in all departments thereof where the workmen are employed.
Section 10. Duration and modification of standing orders
(1) Standing orders finally certified under this Act shall not, except on agreement between the employer and the workmen or a trade union or other representative body of the workmen] be liable to modification until the expiry of six months from the date on which the standing orders or the last modifications thereof came in to operation.
(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (1), an employer or workman or a trade union or other representative body of the workmen] may apply to the Certifying Officer to have the standing orders modified, and such application shall be accompanied by five copies of the modifications proposed to be made, and a certified copy of that agreement shall be filed along with the application.
10-A. Payment of subsistence allowance
(1) Where any workman is suspended by the employer pending investigation or inquiry into complaints or charges of misconduct against him, the employer shall pay to such workman subsistence allowance
(2) If any dispute arises regarding the subsistence allowance payable to a workman under sub-section (1), the workman or the employer concerned may refer the dispute to the Labour Court, constituted under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (14 of 1947).
Section 11. Certifying Officers and appellate authorities to have powers of Civil Court
(1) Every Certifying Officer and appellate authority shall have all the powers of a Civil Court for the purposes of receiving evidence, administering oaths, enforcing the attendance of witnesses, and compelling the discovery and production of documents, and shall be deemed to be a Civil Court within the meaning of [Sections 345 and 346 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974)]
(2) Clerical or arithmetical mistakes in any order passed by a Certifying officer or appellate authority, or errors arising therein from any accidental slip or omission may, at any time, be corrected by that Officer or authority or the successor in office of such officer or authority, as the case may be.]
Section 12. Oral evidence in contradiction of standing orders not admissible
No oral evidence having the effect of adding to or otherwise varying or contradicting standing orders finally certified under this Act shall be admitted in any Court.
12-A. Temporary application of model standing orders
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in Sections to12, for the period commencing on the date on which this Act becomes applicable to an industrial establishment and and the provisions of Section 9, sub-section (2) of Section 13 and Section 13-A shall apply to such model standing orders as they apply to the standing orders so certified.
(2) Nothing contained in sub-section (1) shall apply to an industrial establishment in respect of which the appropriate Government is the Government of the State of Gujarat or the Government of the State of Maharashtra.]
Section 13. Penalties and procedure
(1) An employer who fails to submit draft standing orders as required by Section 3 or who modifies his standing orders otherwise than in accordance with Section 10, shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees.
(2) An employer who does any act in contravention of the standing orders finally certified under this Act for his industrial establishment shall be punishable with fine which may extend to one hundred rupees.
(3) No Court inferior to that of 29 [a Metropolitan or Judicial Magistrate of the second class] shall try any offence under this section.
13-A. Interpretation, etc., of standing orders
If any question arises as to the application or interpretation of a standing order certified under this Act, any employer or workman [or a trade union or other representative body of the workmen may refer the question to any one of the Labour Courts constituted under the Industrial Disputes Act,. 1947.
13-B. Act not to apply to certain industrial establishments
Nothing in this Act shall apply to an industrial establishment in so far as the workmen employed therein are persons to whom the Fundamental and Supplementary Rules, Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal)Rules, Civil Services (Temporary Service) Rules, Revised Leave Rules, Civil Service Regulations, Civilians in Defense Service or any other rules or regulations than may be notified in this behalf by the appropriate Government in the Official Gazette, apply.
14. Power of exempt
The appropriate Government may by notification in the Official Gazette exempt, conditionally or unconditionally any industrial establishment or class of industrial establishments from all or any of the provisions of this Act.
14-A. Delegation of powers
The appropriate Government may by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that any power exercisable by it under this Act or any rules made thereunder shall, if any, as may be specified in the direction, be exercisable also-
(a) Where the appropriate Government is the Central Government, by such officer or authority subordinate to the Central Government or by the State Government
(b) where the appropriate Government is a State Government, by such officer or authority subordinate to the State Government
Section 15. Power to make rules
(1) The appropriate Government may after previous publication, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry out the purposes of this Act.
(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may:
(a) prescribe additional matters to be included in the Schedule, and the procedure to be followed in modifying standing orders
(b) set out model standing orders for the purposes of this Act
(c) prescribe the procedure of Certifying Officers and appellate authorities
(d) Prescribe the fee which may be charged for copies of standing orders entered in the register of standing orders
(e) provide for any other matter which is to be or may be prescribed
