LAHORE, June 28: The Pakistan Railways administration has yet to implement the Supreme Court’s last year decision regarding reinstatement of its sacked employees. Justices Sardar Muhammad Raza Khan, M. Javed Butter and Tassaduq Husain Jillani had on Nov 23, 2004, held that the employees of the Pakistan Railways “are employees of the federal government... if they are workers labour court has jurisdiction to entertain their petitions.”

The PR administration has been denying reinstatement in service to its 25,000 or so employees since 2000 on the pretext that the Industrial Relations Ordinance 1969 was not applicable to its employees, as they were governed by two notifications issued by the ministry of railways.

In a notification on June 9, 1992, it said “railway workers... who belong to the supervisory staff of workers and workmen and those... who belong to the supervisory staff of civil servants, shall also be deemed to be supervisors.”

It notified on Oct 18, 1993, that 20 railway lines — almost the whole network — “being essential to the defence service of Pakistan during peace and war, were classified as MOD (ministry of defence) lines... the Industrial Relations Ordinance 1969 is not applicable inter alia to any railway employee employed in connection with the MoD lines or any installation connected therewith or incidental thereto, including installations such as sheds, washing lines, sick lines etc.”

The notification warned the railway employees “in their own interest not to take part in any trade union activities.” Otherwise, “they shall become liable to all legal and disciplinary actions as provided under the law and the statutory rules.”

A good number of the sacked employees, who had been working in workshops, sheds and other organizations of open line establishment, moved the Lahore High Court which declared on May 30, 2000, that their removal from service orders were “without lawful authority and was of no legal effect.”

The Peshawar High Court had also dismissed the constitutional petition filed by the railways against the judgment of the Labour Appellate Tribunal. The PHC upheld the plea of employees that they were workmen and their service conditions were governed by the IRO and not the Service Tribunal Act. The railways administration went into appeal against the judgment and the Supreme Court upheld the PHC decision.

The Supreme Court judgment held that “employees of the Pakistan Railway are employees of the federal government and for the law purpose of redress of grievances regarding terms and conditions of service remains unaffected by addition of section 2-A of the Service Tribunal Act 1973 i.e. if they are workers labour court has jurisdiction to entertain their petitions.”