High Court issues 14 pointer steps for hiring Contractual Staff in Central Govt Hospitals
New Delhi: Taking note of the complaints that in case of contractual employment in Hospitals, sometimes the employees become the victim of sudden termination or they are allegedly asked to pay money to keep their job, the Delhi High Court has recently directed steps that the Central Government Hospitals are required to follow for making sure that no improper and corrupt practices are indulged by the contractors.
The Delhi High Court bench comprising of Justice Pratibha M. Singh, has directed 14 pointer guidelines "in order to maintain uniformity, transparency and consistency in the recruitment of contractual workers."
The steps are as follows-
"a. For selection of the contractual firm through GeM, two separate and independent committees, viz., Bid finalization committee and Bid evaluation committee comprising of non-administrative faculty members would be constituted;
This comes after some of the contractual staff, who were employed at the Lady Hardinge Medical College and Hospital, approached the court challenging their illegal termination of services. They submitted that while they were earlier engaged by one Contractor, and working at the Hospital since 2015, when the new contractor stepped in, their services were terminated. It has been alleged in the petition that the new contractor demanded money in exchange of keeping them employed at their previous positions.
In an interim relief, the HC had earlier asked the new contractor to engage the service of the petitioners and pay them salaries and not to terminate them.
Considering such a grievance made against such a reputed hospital the court had directed the Secretary of Union Health Ministry to look into the matter and submit a report before the court. Following this, a report was placed on record and the report was s forwarded to the Committee constituted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for suggesting further action to be taken on the Enquiry Report.
Consequently, a report dated 19th October 2020, on the actions proposed and measures taken on the Enquiry Report, was also filed by the Hospital and all the parties were allowed to peruse the same.
After perusing the report, the Court noted that in a large number of labor-related matters, allegations are raised by the Workmen that once the contractor has changed, the new contractors demand lump-sum amounts from the proposed employees who are to be engaged. The bench also took note of the steps taken by the Hospital and further steps suggested by the Committee.
Finally, the court noted, "A perusal of the Report by the Committee clearly shows that there were several gaps in the recruitment of contractual workers and several reforms have been suggested."
Accordingly, the Court directed the LHMC along with other Central Government Hospitals to follow the steps mentioned earlier to ensure that no improper and corrupt practices are indulged in by the contractors.
"The hospital administration shall ensure that the abovementioned steps are taken and are monitored on a regular basis. The responsibility for ensuring that the steps as directed hereinabove are taken, would be of the Medical Superintendent of the hospital, who shall ensure that the contractual workers are not in any manner abused or misused, and the proper payment of their salaries, in accordance with the amount being released by the hospitals are, in fact, being made by the Contractors," clarified the order dated 27.10.2021.
To read the court order, click on the link below.
Disclaimer: This website is primarily for healthcare professionals. The content here does not replace medical advice and should not be used as medical, diagnostic, endorsement, treatment, or prescription advice. Medical science evolves rapidly, and we strive to keep our information current. If you find any discrepancies, please contact us at corrections@medicaldialogues.in. Read our Correction Policy here. Nothing here should be used as a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We do not endorse any healthcare advice that contradicts a physician's guidance. Use of this site is subject to our Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and Advertisement Policy. For more details, read our Full Disclaimer here.
NOTE: Join us in combating medical misinformation. If you encounter a questionable health, medical, or medical education claim, email us at factcheck@medicaldialogues.in for evaluation.