The Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955

(1) This Act may be called the 1[Working Journalists and otherNewspaper Employees] (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955. (2) It extends to the whole of India 2***.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-- 1[(a) "Board" means-- (i) in relation to working journalists, the Wage Board constituted under section 9; and (ii) in relation to non-journalist newspaper employees, the Wage Board constituted undersection 13C;] (b) "newspaper" means any printed periodical work containing public news or comments onpublic news and includes such other class of printed periodical work as may, from time to time, benotified in this behalf by the Central Government in the Official Gazette; (c) "newspaper employee" means any working journalist, and includes any other personemployed to do any work in, or in relation to, any newspaper establishment; (d) "newspaper establishment" means an establishment under the control of any person or body orpersons, whether incorporated or not, for the production or publication of one or more newspapers orfor conducting any news agency or syndicate; 2[and includes newspaper establishments specified as one establishment under the Schedule. Explanation.--For the purposes of this clause,-- (a) different departments, branches and centres of newspaper establishments shall be treatedas parts thereof; (b) a printing press shall be deemed to be a newspaper establishment if the principal businessthereof is to print newspaper;] 3[(dd) "non-journalist newspaper employee" means a person employed to do any work in, or inrelation to, any newspaper establishment, but does not include any such person who-- (i) is a working journalist, or (ii) is employed mainly in a managerial or administrative capacity, or (iii) being employed in a supervisory capacity, performs, either by the nature of the dutiesattached to his office or by reason of the powers vested in him, functions mainly of a managerialnature;] (e) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; 4[(ee) "Tribunal" means,-- (i) in relation to working journalists, the Tribunal constituted under section 13AA; and (ii) in relation to non-journalist newspaper employees, the Tribunal constituted under section13DD;] 5[(eee) "wages" means all remuneration capable of being expressed in terms of money, whichwould, if the terms of employment, expressed or implied, were fulfilled, be payable to a newspaperemployee in respect of his employment or of work done in such employment, and includes-- (i) such allowances (including dearness allowance) as the newspaper employee is for the timebeing entitled to; (ii) the value of any house accommodation, or of supply of light, water, medical attendance orother amenity or of any service or of any concessional supply of food-grains or other articles; (iii) any travelling concession, but does not include-- (a) any bonus; (b) any contribution paid or payable by the employer to any pension fund or provident fund or forthe benefit of the newspaper employee under any law for the time being in force (c) any gratuity payable on the termination of his service. Explanation.--In this clause, the term "wages" shall also include new allowances, if any, of anydescription fixed from time to time.] (f) "working journalist" means a person whose principal avocation is that of a journalist and6[who is employed as such, either whole-time or part-time, in, or in relation to, one or morenewspaper establishments], and includes an editor, a leader-writer, news-editor, sub-editor, featurewriter,copy-tester, reporter, correspondent, cartoonist, news photographer and proof-reader, but doesnot include any such person who-- (i) is employed mainly in a managerial or administrative capacity, or (ii) being employed in a supervisory capacity, performs, either by the nature of the dutiesattached to his office or by reason of the powers vested in him, functions mainly of a managerialnature; (g) all words and expressions used but not defined in this Act and defined in the IndustrialDisputes Act, 1947 (14 of 1947) shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in that Act.

(1) The provisions of the Industrial DisputesAct, 1947, as in force for the time being, shall, subject to the modification specified in sub-section (2),apply to, or in relation to, working journalists as they apply to, or in relation to, workmen within themeaning of that Act. (2) Section 25F of the aforesaid Act, in its application to working journalists, shall be construed as ifin clause (a) thereof, for the period of notice referred to therein in relation to the retrenchment of aworkman, the following periods of notice in relation to the retrenchment of a working journalist had beensubstituted, namely:-- (a) six months, in the case of an editor, and (b) three months, in the case of any other working journalist.

Where at any time between the14th day of July, 1954, and the 12th day of March, 1955, any working journalist had been retrenched, heshall be entitled to receive from the employer-- (a) wages for one month at the rate to which he was entitled immediately before his retrenchment,unless he had been given one month's notice in writing before such retrenchment; and (b) compensation which shall be equivalent to fifteen days average pay for every completed yearof service under that employer or any part thereof in excess of six months.

1[5. Payment of gratuity.--(1) Where-- (a) any working journalist has been in continuous service, whether before or after thecommencement of this Act, for not less than three years in any newspaper establishment, and-- (i) his services are terminated by the employer in relation to that newspaper establishment forany reason whatsoever, otherwise than as a punishment inflicted by way of disciplinary action; or (ii) he retires from service on reaching the age of superannuation; or (b) any working journalist has been in continuous service, whether before or after thecommencement of this Act, for not less than ten years in any newspaper establishment, and hevoluntarily resigns on or after the 1st day of July, 1961, from service in that newspaper establishmenton any ground whatsoever other than on the ground of conscience; or (c) any working journalist has been in continuous service, whether before or after thecommencement of this Act for not less than three years in any newspaper establishment, and hevoluntarily resigns on or after the 1st day of July, 1961, from service in that establishment on theground of conscience; or (d) any working journalist dies while he is in service in any newspaper establishment; theworking journalist or, in the case of his death, his nominee or nominees or, if there is no nominationin force at the time of the death of the working journalist, his family, as the case may be, shall,without prejudice to any benefits or rights accruing under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (14 of1947), be paid, on such termination, retirement, resignation or death, by the employer in relation tothat establishment gratuity which shall be equivalent to fifteen days average pay for every completedyear of service or any part thereof in excess of six months: Provided that in the case of a working journalist referred to in clause (b), the total amount of gratuitythat shall be payable to him shall not exceed twelve and half month's average pay: Provided further that where a working journalist is employed in any newspaper establishment whereinnot more than six working journalists were employed on any day of the twelve months immediatelypreceding the commencement of this Act, the gratuity payable to a working journalist employed in anysuch newspaper establishment for any period of service before such commencement shall not beequivalent to fifteen days average pay for every completed year of service or any part thereof in excessof six months but shall be equivalent to-- (a) three days' average pay for every completed year of service or any part thereof in excess ofsix months, if the period of such past service does not exceed five years; (b) five days' average pay for every completed year of service or any part thereof in excess of sixmonths, if the period of such past service exceeds five years but does not exceed ten years; and (c) seven days' average pay for every completed year of service or any part thereof in excess ofsix months, if the period of such past service exceeds ten years. Explanation.--For the purposes of this sub-section and sub-section (1) of section 17, familymeans-- (i) in the case of a male working journalist, his widow, children, whether married or unmarried,and his dependent parents and the widow and children of his deceased son: Provided that a widow shall not be deemed to be a member of the family of the working journalistif at the time of his death she was not legally entitled to be maintained by him; (ii) in the case of a female working journalist, her husband, children, whether married orunmarried, and the dependent parents of the working journalist or of her husband, and the widow andchildren of her deceased son: Provided that if the working journalist has expressed her desire to exclude her husband from thefamily, the husband and his dependent parents shall not be deemed to be a part of the workingjournalists family, and in either of the above two cases, if the child of a working journalist or of a deceased son of a workingjournalist has been adopted by another person and if under the personal law of the adopter, adoption islegally recognised, such a child shall not be considered as a member of the family of the workingjournalist. (2) Any dispute whether a working journalist has voluntarily resigned from service in any newspaperestablishment on the ground of conscience shall be deemed to be an industrial dispute within the meaningof the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (14 of 1947) or any corresponding law relating to investigation andsettlement of industrial disputes in force in any State. (3) Where a nominee is a minor and the gratuity under sub-section (1) has become payable during hisminority, it shall be paid to a person appointed under sub-section (3) of section 5A: Provided that where there is no such person, payment shall be made to any guardian of the property ofthe minor appointed by a competent court or where no such guardian has been appointed, to either parentof the minor, or where neither parent is alive, to any other guardian of the minor: Provided further that where the gratuity is payable to two or more nominees, and either or any ofthem dies, the gratuity shall be paid to the surviving nominee or nominees.]