‘Equal pay’ applies only to same institution: Madras High Court

CHENNAI: The principle of equal pay for equal work only applies where the employees are working in the same establishment and under the same conditions of service. madras high court Already said.“For employees working in public sector enterprises and government departments, there is no comparison. Since the rules of service are different and distinct, there is no question of the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work. “A division bench of Justices SM Subramaniam and C Kumarappan made the observation while setting aside a single-judge order directing the government to provide equal pay for equal work to frontline workers employed by Arasu Rubber Corporation Limited, a public sector enterprise owned by the Tamil Nadu government.“The directives issued by the government on different occasions since 2010 indicate that the revised pay scale of corporate employees on par with government employees should not be implemented in a routine manner but with the approval of the government,” the bench said. The bench said that public institutions are fully funded by the government and therefore the government should take into account financial constraints.“There is no doubt that the court has considered equal pay for equal work but the principle will apply if the employees are working in the same establishment with the same duties and responsibilities and no comparison can be made between employees working in public sector undertakings and government departments,” the bench said.