Court Orders Grant of Covid Relief to Widow of ESI-insured Worker: Special Incentive Not to Be Counted Towards Wages.
08 November 2024
Employees State Insurance Act >> Labor Law
This writ petition in the matter of Godambari Raturi v/s Employee State Insurance Corporation Ltd. & Another, filed under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India, challenges the rejection of the petitioner's claim for relief under the Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Covid-19 Relief Scheme. The petitioner, the widow of Om Prakash Raturi, who died of Covid-19 on July 1, 2020, sought benefits under the scheme after his death, but the claim was denied by ESIC on the grounds that his salary, including a special incentive of Rs. 2,674 per month, exceeded the wage limit of Rs. 21,000 per month.
The main issues were whether the deceased worker met the criteria of an "employee" under Section 2(9) of the Employees' State Insurance (ESI) Act and whether the special incentive could be considered as part of his wages. The court found that the special incentive, provided temporarily to assist workers during the pandemic, should not be added to the wages for the purpose of determining eligibility under the Covid Scheme. As such, the worker’s salary was less than the prescribed limit, and he was entitled to the benefits of the scheme.
The petition was allowed, and the respondents were directed to grant the Covid relief benefits to the petitioner within four weeks.
EMPLOYEES STATE INSURANCE ACT, 1948