Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Heairng a petition jointly moved by provincial social security authorities in the Punjab, the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Monday gave the Lahore High Court (LHC) two weeks to hear applications against the suspension of government notifications raising minimum wage and its associated social security benefits to be contributed by employers.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Ijazul Ahsan was hearing the petition, jointly moved by the Punjab Employees Social Security Institution (Pessi), the Punjab Employees Social Security (Pess) Lahore director, and the Pess Sheikhupura director through advocate Raheel Kamran Sheikh.

The apex court directed the LHC to pass a reasonable order after hearing both parties.

In its petition agianst the LHC’s decision to suspend the notifications, the PESSI had argued that the ad-interim relief offered by the high court to the employers was in violation of the law as well as the principles earlier enunciated by the apex court.

The petitioner prayed to the apex court to overturn the LHC’s February 28, 2018, order which suspended amendments to the Provincial Employees Social Security Ordinance of 1965. The ordinance allows for raises in wages of workers from Rs10,000 to 12,500 per month or more, and of daily wagers from Rs400 to Rs600 per month.

The petitioner argued that the high court acted with complete disregard for the law enunciated by the Supreme Court, while suspending the notifications.

The 1965 ordinance was promulgated by the Punjab government to introduce social security that would ensure certain benefits to workers and their dependents in the event of sickness, maternity, workplace injury or death and medical care of dependents, disablement pension and gratuity, survivor’s pension, death grant in case of death and medical care in case of employment injury.

These benefits are covered under Chapter V of the 1965 Ordinance and are specified in Sections 35 to 47A of the Ordinance. The Pessi was created to protect and secure the interests of low-income workers and employees in the Punjab.

The institution strives to provide health care facilities and cash benefits to secured workers and their dependents employed in industrial or commercial establishments operating in the Punjab.

Essentially, the petition argued, the ordinance was in the nature of a beneficial and remedial legislation enacted for the purpose of welfare of labour.

A number of industrial units – Shafi (Pvt) Ltd, Tanveer Cotton Mills (Pvt) Ltd, Tanveer Spinning, Weaving Mills and five others – subsequently approached the LHC, challenging the vires of the amendments made to the 1965 ordinance.

According to their petition, a notification issued on Oct 18, 2012, had raised wages from Rs10,000 to Rs12,500 per month (for regulars) or from Rs400 to Rs600 (for daily wagers), whereas, under the notification of Jan 30, 2013 the monthly wage was raised to Rs15,000. Under a notification issued on October 12, 2014, the monthly wage was raised to Rs18,000, and the daily wage to Rs750. Then, a notification (dated June 15, 2017) raised the monthly wage to Rs22,000 and daily to Rs1,000.

In its order, the LHC suspended these notifications and ordered the petitioners to continue contributing the amount of social security payable before the issuance of the notifications, as per law, in which the wage ceiling was fixed at Rs10,000 for regular workers and Rs400 for daily wagers.

Published in Daily Times, May 15^th 2018.