1/16/2022

Workers & their

classification
Md. Salauddin Saimum
Assistant Professor
Department of Law
University of Rajshahi

Who is a Worker?
Worker is a person who performs
physical labour as a service or for
livelihood.
An individual who works part-time
or full-time under a contract of
employment, whether oral or
written, express or implied, and has
recognized rights and duties called
as worker.

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Who is a Worker?
Byrne Brothers (Formwork) Ltd v Baird
(2001)
In the Byrne Brothers case three basic
requirements was appeared in the “worker”
definition.
1. personal service
2. a contractual relation (with mutuality of
obligations)
3. the services are not provided by a business
undertaking

Statutory Definition of Worker

Section 2(65) of the Bangladesh Labor Act
2006
‘Worker’ means any person, including an
apprentice employed in any establishment
or industry, either directly or through a
contractor, to carry out any skilled,
unqualified, manual, technical, trade
promotional or clerical work for hire or
reward, whether the terms of employment
are expressed or implied, but does not
include a person employed primarily in a
managerial or administrative or supervisory
work.

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Case References
❑ Time-keepers will be treated as
worker under the ambit of the
labour law. (Central Railway
Workshop, Jhasi vs Vishwanath,
AIR 1970 SC 488)
❑ The Tobacco worker will also held
as Worker ( AIR 1961)
❑ Security Guard of a commercial
bank is a worker [Managing
Director, Rupali Bank vs Nazrul
Islam Patwary (1996)]
❑ Armed Guard of a bank can be a
worker [Tozammel Hossain Akand
vs Rupali Bank (2000)]

Case References
▪ Mere designation is not sufficient to indicate whether a person
is a worker or not. (Uttara Bank Ltd. vs Shahabuddin Khan, 59
DLR 2007)
▪ Assistant Cashier can be treated as a worker. ( Sonali Bank vs
Chandan Kumar Nandi 48 DLR 1996)
▪ If any person involved in a work where he get wages on daily
or weekly basis, he will also be included as a worker. ( AIR
1961)

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Who is not a Worker?

▪ Foreman will not be treated as worker. [The workmen

of Bata Shoe Co. Ltd. vs Bata Shoe Co. Ltd 23
DLR(SC) 60]
▪ A security staff is not a worker. ( North Bengal Paper
Mills vs Labour Court 45 DLR 1993)
▪ An employee of Dhaka Improvement Trust is not a
worker (34 DLR)
▪ Although the Pesh Imam is appointed by the authority
of the establishment, he is not a worker ( Shahjibazar
Power Station vs Golam Hossain 33 DLR 29)

Who is not a Worker?

▪ The persons who have no such binding or obligation to
engage a work in a particular day or particular time and
who works independently, is not a worker. (Shankar
Balaji vs Maharastra AIR 1962)
▪ The person who only work for the hope of gratuity but did
not engaged upon a work under contract, that very person
is not a worker. Voluntary laborer is not a worker. ( Kamp
vs Levis, 1914)
▪ A worker submit his resignation letter and the authority
accept the letter. Afterwards, that very worker will not be
treated as a worker under the labour Act. (Kushtia Sugar
Mills vs Labour Court, Khulna 32 DLR, 1980)

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What is important in determining a

person as a worker or not, is to see the
main nature of the job and not so much

Determining his designation. The issue as to whether a

person was worker or not has to be

Factor resolved in each case with reference to

the evidence on record.
[Mujibur Rahman Sarkar
vs
Labour court, Khulna
( 1981) 31 DLR 301]

Classification of Workers

Apprentice Badli Casual Temporary Probationer Permanent

Added by the Bangladesh Labour(Amendment)

Seasonal
Act, 2013

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Apprentice Worker

Appointed get only

as a allowance
learner not wages

Not a full-
status is
fledged
trainee
worker

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Badli Worker

Appointed as work in lieu of

a substitute Permanent &
Probationer worker

work for
temporary limited
work time
period

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Casual Worker

Appointed as
an occasional Indefinite Job/Non-
worker recurring Job

Work for
temporary
definite
work
periods

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Leading Case Reference

Cozans and Ratherford 52 SJ 700 Case
Where there is an agreement that a man is to come regularly once
a month and keep the windows clean except when the family is
away and the house is shut up. The court held that, the
employment is not casual.

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Temporary Worker

Appointed for
temporary may be recurring
work Job

Job is work must be

temporary finished within a
nature limited period

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Probationer Worker

Provisionaly To fill up the

appointed Permanent vacancy

ultimately he
will be a yet not completed the
permanent probation period
worker

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Permanent Worker

appointed on a
permanent Regular Work
basis

satisfactorily
get full completed the
benefit probation period

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Seasonal Worker

appointed on Work for a

seasonal basis particular season
or period of time

previous year
Recurring worker will get the
priority

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