Constitutional protection of vulnerable employees against unequal bargaining power

In employment relationships between the State and temporary or contractual workers, the structural inequality between the parties requires active judicial intervention and sensitivity. The State assumes the dominant position of a metaphorical lion possessing immense statutory authority, while the job aspirant is reduced to the position of a vulnerable metaphorical lamb with no capacity to negotiate contract terms. Courts are duty-bound by the constitutional mandate of social and economic justice under Article 14 to intervene and protect vulnerable employees from being forced to submit meekly to one-sided, oppressive contractual terms dictated by a dominant public employer. (Bhola Nath v. The State of Jharkhand | 2026 INSC 99)