Mere Abusive Language not a serious misconduct to inflict capital punishment - Madras High Court in Worker vs Hindustan Unilever Limited
Important Points: Alleged Misconduct: The Worker barged into the shop floor, where the Production Manager and H.R.Executives were holding a meeting with the operators of Hassia Machine; b) he disrupted the meeting and started abusive language against the Executives and the Manager and scolded the Executive by name Sundaram in a filthy language and c) he also intimidated him by holding him by his shift collar, thereby created an unpleasant atmosphere Long ago, there was prior incident of misconduct. HC's View and reference to series of judgements: - Use of abusive language by itself cannot constitute a serious misconduct fit for capital punishment - The context and the provocations to be borne in mind while determining the punishment - The Class of the work-men and the abuse to be considered from the level where he came from and also the time lapse which can unwound the harm if any caused - Consider the age of workmen, duration of the dispute and the feasibility of he getting e