CHENNAI: The state commissioner for persons with disabilities has directed Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Private Limited (HCCB) to consider within 60 days the absorption of 31 hearing- and speech-impaired workers—who have rendered uninterrupted service since 2002—into permanent employment.
In its final recommendation order issued on July 2, the commission held that the 31 contract staff members were subjected to discrimination solely on the grounds of their disability and that the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) company had violated the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
Commissioner R Sudhan noted that the complainants have been working at the HCCB’s unit in Nemam of Tiruvallur since 2002 through successive contractors. They perform bottle inspection, quality verification and related operations under substantially identical supervision.
Further, the HCCB regularised 35 able-bodied contract workers in 2010 while retaining the 31 hearing- and speech-impaired staff as contract employees. While the complainants were designated as “loaders”, they perform skilled quality control work. They still were denied the benefits extended to similarly placed able-bodied workers, the commissioner said.
Rejecting the HCCB’s contention that no employer-employee relationship existed, the commissioner found that the company’s stand conflicted with its own conduct by accepting the ‘Best Private Employer Award’ conferred on it for employing the complainants. The commissioner also instructed the company to implement a comprehensive Equal Opportunity Policy within 90 days.