Consolidated Marine Engineers Ltd vs Assistant Commissioner of Labour (Colombo South) and Others – sllr 2020 volume 3 page 248

In the case between Consolidated Marine Engineers Ltd (Petitioner) and the Assistant Commissioner of Labour (Colombo South) and others (including the 4th to 6th respondents as security guards), the court addressed whether the 4th to 6th respondents were legally classified as employees of the petitioner under the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) Act and whether the inquiry process satisfied procedural fairness standards. It was held that the evidence did not establish a contract of employment between the petitioner and the respondents within the meaning of the EPF Act. Further, the procedural shortcomings of the inquiry, including the lack of opportunity for the petitioner to cross-examine witnesses and evidence being taken in the petitioner’s absence, rendered part of the decision unsustaina