Section 11. Procedure and powers of conciliation officers, Board, courts and Tribunals and National Tribunals
73[(1) Subject to any rules that may be made in this behalf, an arbitrator, a Board, court, Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal shall follow such procedure as the arbitrator or other authority concerned may think fit.]
(2) A conciliation officer or a member of a board 74[or court or the presiding officer of a Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal] may for the purpose of inquiry into any existing or apprehended industrial dispute, after giving reasonable notice, enter the premises occupied by any establishment to which the dispute relates.
(3) Every Board, court, 75[Labor Court, Tribunal and National Tribunal] shall have the same powers as are vested in a Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure,1908 (5 or 1908), when trying a suit, in respect of the following matters, namely:-
(a) enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;
(b) compelling the production of documents and material objects;
(c) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses;
(d) in respect of such other matters as may be prescribed, and every inquiry or investigation by a Board, court, 76[Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code (45 to 1860).
(4) A conciliation officer 77[may enforce the attendance of any person for the purpose of examination of such person or call for] and inspect any document which he has ground for considering to be relevant to the industrial dispute 78[or to be necessary for the purpose of verifying the implementation of any award or carrying out any other duty imposed on him under this Act, and for the aforesaid purposes, the conciliation officer shall have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), 77[in respect of enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him or of compelling the production of documents]] .
79[(5) A court, Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal may, if it so thinks fit, appoint one or more persons having special knowledge of the matter under consideration as an assessor or assessors to advise it in the proceeding before it.
(6) All conciliation officers, members of a Board or court and the presiding officers of a Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).
(7) Subject to any rules made under this Act the costs of, and incidental to, any proceeding before a Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal shall be in the discretion of that Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, and the Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, as the case may be, shall have full power to determine by and to whom and to what extent and. subject to what conditions, if any, such costs are to be paid, and to give all necessary directions for the purposes aforesaid and such costs may, on application made to the appropriate government by the person entitled, be recovered by that government in the same manner as an arrear of land revenue.]
80[ (8) Every 81[Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal] shall be deemed to be civil court for the purposes of 82[sections 345, 346, and 348 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974).]
Section 11. Procedure and powers of conciliation officers, Board, courts and Tribunals and National Tribunals
73[(1) Subject to any rules that may be made in this behalf, an arbitrator, a Board, court, Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal shall follow such procedure as the arbitrator or other authority concerned may think fit.]
(2) A conciliation officer or a member of a board 74[or court or the presiding officer of a Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal] may for the purpose of inquiry into any existing or apprehended industrial dispute, after giving reasonable notice, enter the premises occupied by any establishment to which the dispute relates.
(3) Every Board, court, 75[Labor Court, Tribunal and National Tribunal] shall have the same powers as are vested in a Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure,1908 (5 or 1908), when trying a suit, in respect of the following matters, namely:-
(a) enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;
(b) compelling the production of documents and material objects;
(c) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses;
(d) in respect of such other matters as may be prescribed, and every inquiry or investigation by a Board, court, 76[Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code (45 to 1860).
(4) A conciliation officer 77[may enforce the attendance of any person for the purpose of examination of such person or call for] and inspect any document which he has ground for considering to be relevant to the industrial dispute 78[or to be necessary for the purpose of verifying the implementation of any award or carrying out any other duty imposed on him under this Act, and for the aforesaid purposes, the conciliation officer shall have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), 77[in respect of enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him or of compelling the production of documents]] .
79[(5) A court, Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal may, if it so thinks fit, appoint one or more persons having special knowledge of the matter under consideration as an assessor or assessors to advise it in the proceeding before it.
(6) All conciliation officers, members of a Board or court and the presiding officers of a Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).
(7) Subject to any rules made under this Act the costs of, and incidental to, any proceeding before a Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal shall be in the discretion of that Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, and the Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, as the case may be, shall have full power to determine by and to whom and to what extent and. subject to what conditions, if any, such costs are to be paid, and to give all necessary directions for the purposes aforesaid and such costs may, on application made to the appropriate government by the person entitled, be recovered by that government in the same manner as an arrear of land revenue.]
80[ (8) Every 81[Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal] shall be deemed to be civil court for the purposes of 82[sections 345, 346, and 348 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974).]
Section 11A. Powers of Labor Court Tribunal, and National Tribunal to give appropriate relief in case of discharge or dismissal of workmen
Where an industrial dispute relating to the discharge or dismissal of a workman has been referred to a Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal for adjudication and, in the course of the adjudication proceedings, the Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, as the case may be, is satisfied that the order of discharge or dismissal was not justified, it may, by its award, set aside the order of discharge or dismissal and direct reinstatement of the workman on such terms and conditions, if any, as it thinks fit, or give such other relief to the workman including the award of any lesser punishment in lieu of discharge or dismissal as the circumstances of the case may require:
PROVIDED that in any proceeding under this section the Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal, as the case may be, shall rely only on the materials on record and shall not take any fresh evidence in relation to the matter.]
Section 12. Duties of conciliation officers
(1) Where any industrial dispute exists or is apprehended, the conciliation officer may, or where the dispute relates to a public utility service and a notice under section 22 has been given, shall, hold conciliation proceedings in the prescribed manner.
(2) The conciliation officer shall, for the purpose of bringing about a settlement of the dispute, without delay, investigate the dispute and all matters affecting the merits and the right settlement thereof and may do all such things as he thinks fit for the purpose of inducing the parties to come to a fair and amicable settlement of the dispute.
(3) If a settlement of the dispute or of any of the matters in dispute is arrived at in the course of the conciliation proceedings the conciliation officer shall send a report thereof to the appropriate government 84[or an officer authorized in this behalf by the appropriate government] together with a memorandum of the settlement signed by the parties to the dispute.
(4) If no such settlement is arrived at , the conciliation officer shall, as soon as practicable after the close of the investigation, send to the appropriate Government a full report setting forth the steps taken by him for ascertaining the facts and circumstances relating to the dispute and for bringing about a settlement thereof, together with a full statement of such facts and circumstances, and the reasons on account of which, in his opinion, a settlement could not be arrived at.
(5) If, on a consideration of the report referred to in sub-section (4), the appropriate government is satisfied that there is a case for reference to a Board, 85[Labor Court, Tribunal or National Tribunal], it may make such reference. Where the appropriate government does not make such a reference it shall record and communicate to the parties concerned its reasons therefor.
(6) A report under this section shall be submitted within fourteen days of the commencement of the conciliation proceedings or within such shorter period as may be fixed by the appropriate government:
38[PROVIDED that, 18[subject to the approval of the conciliation officer,] the time for the submission of the report may be extended by such period as may be agreed upon in writing by all the parties to the dispute.]
