Labour & Service Referencer (2000-2022) authored by Sri Anil Kaushik, an eminent HR scholar and widely respected in the industry for HR monthly of the country Business Manager is a serious effort to integrate IR criticalities to HR. In recent times engaging retainers and outsourcing of legal issues related to service matters of employees become practice. But supervision of such an outsourced role continues to remain institutional liability. More so engaging a legal retainer for interpretation of service matters and pleading of same by the advocate before Hon’ble court may not necessarily deliver the desired results. If some deviation occurred during processing of a HR role, it could not be undone at a later stage and the same shall be capitalized by the defense counsel ending with loss of face of the institution other than money, time and effort. Since by and large the service matters are structured, whether it is Public, Private or MNCs; any deviation from the laid down processes may not evade the attention of experienced eyes of the Judiciary. Thus, it is very important that the managers dealing with employment and service matters related roles are equipped with the happening and award of judiciary pronouncement across the country. This builds the conceptual skill of HR. Continuous exposures, discussion and handling of employment related legal spectrum is an invaluable reference point for HR, and in the longer term they will turn as an asset for the corporate. We must remember that there is no separate HR and IR verticals, HRIR goes hand in hand. Thus, the HR managers must have employment related conceptual skills to understand the perspective and future unfolding whenever they coordinate with the same task.
Also read: Evolving Priorities in Collective Bargaining
The 850+ pager book is a perfect fit for the millennium workforce who often tries to get the solutions in the system populated Drop down Box.
The book is a unique compilation of one-line judgements delivered by the Apex court and various High Courts of India during the period 2000-2022.
The practicing HR managers shall be immensely benefitted in navigating with the Referencer where the judgements are available topic wise both in respect of Hon’ble Supreme court and various High Courts. Use of easy words and lucid style shall definitely attract the attention of young HR to the judgement and create interest in further learning.
Even the Subject Matters Expert and legal professional find it beneficial in recapitulating the judicial pronouncement. They can use the reference case number and explore for deep understanding of the case from other sources. The inputs from the Referencer are helpful for the policy makers and academicians to understand the perspective as well as the legal ecosystem that is prevailing in the country.
The utility value of the book could be best understood from the fact that Hon’ble Justice Dr. K. J. Thaker of Allahabad High Court used his valued words for the ‘Foreword’ of the book.
The nitty-gritty of the labour reform vis-à-vis implementation of 4 (four) labour codes is on the card. It is expected that radical changes in the employment matters of contemporary relevance would crop up and, in the days to come, many things require to be clarified and interpreted under judicial parlance. It would be great to see the further volumes of the Referncer every 5 years helping updated knowledge of the HRIR professionals.
Reviewed by Indranil Banerjee, Kolkata
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