An employee’s right to raise safety concerns, affirmed by the Kerala HC

It was ruled by the Kerala HC that if an employee is sharing messages and raising safety concerns on WhatsApp then the same is not wrongful.

Justice Satish Ninan had emphasized in a ruling dated 18^th June, that if an employee is disciplined for this reason, then the same is violative of the freedom of speech and expression under article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution.

The same was said by the court while it was overturning the charges against a technician at a government-run fertilizer company as he had posted messages in the private WhatsApp group regarding the safety concerns related to ammonia.

The court agreed with the argument of the petitioner that infringement of Article 19(1)(a) took place.

Even though the technician expressed an apology, the company had issued a warning, which was supposed to be recorded in the service book and would affect his career.

The court said that the issuance of the apology does not amount to admitting the charges.

Written By:- Shianjany Pradhan (@SHIANJANYPRADHAN)