INDIAN RAILWAY LABORATORY STAFF ASSOCIATION Vs. INDIAN RAILWAY BOARD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Railways of India run a para-medical Service for the benefit of their employees; in that "Staff Nurses" are recruited. Their minimum qualification for appointment is Matriculation and Nursing 'A' Certificate which is accorded to them, after a training of three and half years. Their duties include, nursing of patients; pre-operative and postoperative care; assistance to medical Officers in hospitals. A Staff Nurse has to look after 6 to 20 beds in the hospital. A Nursing Sister commands 6 Staff Nurses. A Matron supervises Nurses, Dressers, Hospital Attendants and subordinate staff and is responsible for cleanliness of hospitals. Staff Nurses are paid allowances at varying rates when they are attached to hospitals. The Association of Staff Nurses complained before the Third Pay Commission that their pay does not commensurate with educational qualifications professional training, work load, physical and mental strain and hazards involved in their duties and very low pay scales.

(2.) The Third Pay Commission whilst scrutinising their grievances, noticed, a peculiar phenomenon amongst Staff Nurses from the statistics of 1966-70. Amongst the Staff recruited, 12. 1% stand resigned, may be, because of marriage, because of opportunities in other fields. To set right the phenomenon, all the cognate circumstances were considered and the Commission recommended pay of Staff Nurses from Rs. 150-280 be increased to Rs. 425-640. The Govt. of India accepted the recommendation. The two other components of para-medical Service in Railways were. Laboratory Staff, known as. Scientific Assistants and X-ray Photographers. The pay-scales of the two categories were revised but not in so high figures as Staff Murses. Their revision was recommended, 6ft par with the numerous other Services ufcder the employment of the Government.

(3.) The general wages or scales of piy, were revised by the commission on the basis of criteria of two Committees : The Pay Wage Committee and NFIR Committee. The former recommended the criteria to include the following nine factors: (1) Degree of skill; (2) Strain of work; (3) Experience involved; (4) Training required; (5) Responsibility undertaken (6) Mental and physical requirement; (7) Disagreeableness of the task; (8) Hazard attendant on the work; and (9) Fatigue involved: The NFIR suggested, (a) The method of recruitment level at which the initial recruitment is made in the hierarchy of service or cadre; (b) Minimum Educational and Technical qualifications prescribed for the post; (c) Dealing with the public; (d) Avenues of promotion available and (e) Horizontal and vertical relativity with other jobs in the same service or outside, The Commission adopted (1) to (6) and (9) of the former and item (c) of the latter, as the basis for its recommendation. Based on the eight principles, pay of different categories, were revised including the Scientific Assistants and X-ray Photographers.