Construction labour for factory expansion is outside employee coverage unless the work is connected to manufacturing activity.

Construction labour engaged solely in erecting additional factory buildings and ancillary structures for expansion is not covered by the inclusive definition of "employee" under Section 2(9) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, where the work lacks a real nexus with the factory's manufacturing activity. The applicable test is whether the construction work is incidental to or connected with the manufacturing process itself. Workers employed only for temporary construction of annexes, rest houses, creches, cycle stands and time offices do not satisfy that connection and remain outside coverage.

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Issues: Whether construction workers engaged in erecting additional factory buildings and other ancillary structures for expansion of an existing factory were 'employees' within the meaning of Section 2(9) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948.

Analysis: The relevant test was whether the work performed by the construction workers had a nexus with the factory's manufacturing activity and was incidental to or connected with the work of the factory. The factory's business was yarn production. Workers engaged in construction of additional buildings, annexes, rest houses, creches, cycle stands, time offices, and similar structures were engaged only for the temporary purpose of raising those structures. Their work did not bear the required connection with the manufacturing process itself. The earlier division bench ruling that such workers fall outside the inclusive definition governed the case.

Conclusion: Construction workers employed only for putting up additional structures for expansion of an existing factory were not 'employees' under Section 2(9) of the Act.

Ratio Decidendi: For the purpose of Section 2(9) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, construction labour engaged merely in raising additional structures after the initial setting up of a factory is not covered unless the work has a real nexus with the factory's manufacturing activity and is incidental to or connected with that activity.

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