Will pay sacked employees amount equal to 2 months salary: St Stephens hospital tells Delhi HC

The St Stephens Hospital management on Tuesday informed the Delhi High Court that it will pay the sacked employees an amount equivalent to their salary payable to them for the month of April and will also forthwith release their salary for March.

The High Court was hearing a petition filed by the five employees of St Stephens Hospital management, who had been discharging duties in its branch at Gurugram for the last many years and are aggrieved by their termination vide order dated March 30. The petitioners have sought relief related to direction, seeking quashing of the notice of termination dated March 30 issued by the respondent to the petitioners and the consequent termination of employment of the petitioners from April 1.

They have also sought an appropriate direction upon the respondent hospital to continue employment of the petitioners alongwith its benefit, till such time, the COVID-19 pandemic subsists in the country.

St Stephens Hospital management told Justice Rekha Palli that that the termination of the petitioners has no connection with the onset of COVID-19 and was based on a decision taken by hospital management in the first week of March, 2020 itself. The hospital also submitted that without prejudice to its rights and contentions, keeping in view the existing lockdown in the country, it is willing to pay to the petitioners, an amount equivalent to their salary payable to them for the month of April, 2020 and will also forthwith release their salary for March, 2020. The hospital assured the court that the salary towards March, 2020 will be released to the petitioners during the course of the day itself and the amounts payable for April, 2020 will be released to them on or before May 4.

In view of the aforesaid stand taken by the learned counsel for the St Stephen Hospital management, the court listed the present petition before the roster bench for consideration on May 4.

"While directing that the respondent no.1 (St Stephen Hospital) will remain bound by its statement as noted hereinabove, it is made clear that this Court has not examined the merits of the challenge to the impugned termination orders and, therefore, it will be open for both sides to take all pleas permissible under law. Needless to state, that the acceptance of any amount by the petitioners, in terms of this order will be without prejudice to their rights and contentions in the petition," the court said.

The petitioner has told the Delhi High Court that orders of termination have been illegally passed not only by giving a complete go-bye to the principles of natural justice but in any event contrary to the advisories issued by the government. They also submitted that all the petitioners were engaged in the health care sector, which aspect as also been ignored by the hospital management before terminating their services.

( With inputs from ANI )