The principle of equality explained in Art 14 of the Indian Constitution. Equality does not mean absolute human equality, which is physically impossible to achieve. It is a concept that implies the absence of any particular privilege in favour of any individual due to birth, creed, or other factors, as well as the equal subject of all individuals and classes to the regular law of the land.
“Equality before the law” indicates that;the law should be equal and equally applied among individuals; and should be treated equally; as Dr. Jennings puts it. The right to;sue and be sued, to prosecute and be prosecuted for;the same type of action should be;the same for all citizens of full age and comprehension, regardless of race, religion, wealth and social rank.” There must be no prejudice between; people in similar situations, and the law should apply equally to all.
Equal compensation for equal work is not; specifically recognized a fundamental right by our Constitution, the Supreme Court has;decided that it is unquestionably a constitutional goal under Articles 14, 16, and 39 (c) of the Constitution. As a result, in circumstances of unequal pay scales based on;unreasonable categorization ;this entitlement can be enforced. The Supreme Court has upheld the judgement in Randhir Singh’s case in a number of cases.
As a result, it determined that; those engaged as casual workers on a daily wage basis in; the country’s Nehru Yuwak Kendra were performing the same work as Class IV employees hired on a permanent basis, and hence;were entitled to the same salary and working enviornment. Whether they are; appointed to sanctioned positions or not makes no difference.
Denial of such a request would be a breach of Article 14. Such an argument cannot be;allowed in a welfare state devoted to a socialist model of society.
It was decided that daily rated casual labourers in the P&T Department who performed equivalent work to that of the department’s regular workers were entitled to minimum compensation in the regular workers’ pay scale plus D.A. but with no increase in pay.
Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution prohibit the classification of employees into regular and casual employees for the purpose of paying less than minimum wage. It also goes against the; spirit of Article 7 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, which signed in 1966. Although the directive principles included in Articles 38 and 39 (d) are not enforceable under Article 37 ;the petitioners may rely on them to prove that they have been;subjected to hostile discrimination in this case: denial of minimum pay amounts to labour exploitation. The administration will not be able to take advantage of its privileged position. The government should be a great place to work.
According to the Supreme Court, “Equal pay for equal effort” is not an abstract notion. In order for equality to exist, it must exist among equals; unequal cannot claim equality. Even if the duties and functions are comparable, if the educational credentials required for the two positions are different and the scope of responsibility differs, the concept of equal compensation for equal work is not applicable. It is legal to treat people in the same class differently based on their educational qualifications.
Conclusion
The constitution is a mechanism that promotes both worker empowerment and protection. Constitutional, the civil code, the penal code, and the transnational ILO Conventions are all significant pieces of legislation.
The purpose of the constitution is to balance power between workers and employers, to prevent employers from firing employees without cause, and to build and sustain systems that recognize employees as “equal” players in discussions about their working circumstances, among other things.
By limiting contractual partners’ power to contract on their own terms and mandating minimum safety and wage criteria, the Constitution aims to prevent a race to the bottom.
A government may choose to pass legislation setting maximum or minimum wage or working-hour limits, either nationwide or in specific industries or sectors, to regulate the labour market.
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