“The case be fixed at serial number 1 before a three-judge bench on Sept 20,” ordered Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, who headed a two-judge bench. — File Photo

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court announced on Tuesday it would commence the hearing on appeals moved by a number of newspaper employers against the May 31 Sindh High Court verdict upholding the Seventh Wage Board Award in favour of newspaper workers.

The court issued notices to Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq and the seven respondents mentioned in three appeals.

“Ask the Seth (employers) why don't they enforce the wage award,” the chief justice said, adding: “They (workers) are part and parcel of them. They are like a backbone.”

The petitions were filed by the All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS), Independent Newspapers Corporation (pvt) Limited, Pakistan Herald Publications, Nadai Millat (pvt) Limited, Kawish Publications (pvt) Limited, News Publication (pvt) Limited, J&S Enterprises (pvt) Limited, The Nation Publications (pvt) Ltd, Ibrat (pvt) Ltd, Emmay Zed Publications (pvt) Limited, Zamana Group of Publications, Pir Sufaid Shah Hamdard, Aghaz Publications (pvt) Ltd and Marvi Publications.

Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists President Pervez Shaukat, National Press Club President Afzal Butt, All Pakistan Newspapers Employees Confederation President Shafiuddin Ashraf and a large number of media personnel attended the hearing.

Advocate Salman Akram Raja, the counsel for employees, regretted that many newspaper workers were working for pittance even after putting in 40 years of work. He said the seventh wage award was announced in 2001. Advocate Faiz Ghangharo also represented the employees.

When the chief justice said the next wage board must have been due by now, Abdul Hafeez Pirzada, the counsel for employers, contended that the passage of the 18th Amendment had killed the possibility of the next wage board award.

The petitioners sought annulment of all wage board decisions, particularly the seventh wage board. They challenged the jurisdiction of Implementation Tribunal for Newspaper Employees (ITNE) and said the tribunal for the 7th award implementation had assumed unlimited judicial powers of civil, criminal and revenue courts, besides suo motu and executory powers, which were not vested in it.

The ITNE, they argued, could not exercise such functions or powers because it was not part of the judicial system. “The vesting of judicial powers has to be done by the appropriate government and that the tribunal is not a legal body.”

The petitioners asked whether the one-man ITNE constituted under the Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) Act, 1973, could be vested with undefined, unrestricted or any judicial powers without being part of the judiciary or judicial system of the country.

They termed the seventh wage board decision irrational and said it had imposed an unbearable economic and financial burden on newspaper establishments.