Industrial Management and Labor Relations

Chapter: 04. Industrial Conflict

Industrial Conflict
According to Section 2 (k) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947,
“The term ‘industrial dispute’ means “any dispute or difference between employers and employers
or between employers and workmen, or between workmen and workmen, which is connected with
the employment or non- employment or the terms of employment and conditions of employment
of any person”.
“Conflict is said to exist between two and more individuals of work group when they disagree on
a significant issue/ issues and clash over the issues” - IW.F. Glueck,
“Conflicts are regarded as a negative force that creates tension, lowers productivity and disrupts
employee relationships.” - J. W. Newstrom
“Conflict is a part of organizational life and may occur within the individual, between individual,
between the individual and the group, and between groups” - Harold Koontz and Weihrich
“Conflict is a disagreement among two or more individuals, groups or organizations.” - R. W.
Griffin

Nature of Industrial Conflict

The following principles judge the nature of an industrial dispute:
1. The dispute must affect a large number of workmen who have a community of interest and
the rights of these workmen must be affected as a class.

2. The dispute must be taken up either by the industry union or by a substantial number of
workmen.

3. The grievance turns from individual complaint into a general complaint.

4. There must be some nexus between the union and the dispute.

5. According to Section 2A of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, a workman has a right to
raise an industrial dispute with regard to termination, discharge, dismissal, or retrenchment
of his or her service, even though no other workman or any trade union of workman or any
trade union of workmen raises it or is a party to the dispute.
Forms of Industrial Conflict
The industrial conflicts are manifested in the following forms:
Strikes
Strike is the most important form of industrial disputes. A strike is a spontaneous and concerted
withdrawal of labor from production. The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 defines a strike as
“suspension or cessation of work by a group of persons employed in any industry, acting in
combination or a concerted refusal or a refusal under a common understanding of any number of
persons who are or have been so employed to continue to work or accept employment”.
According to Patterson “Strikes constitute militant and organized protest against existing industrial
relations. They are symptoms of industrial unrest in the same way that boils symptoms of
disordered system”.

Depending on the purpose, Mamoria ET. Al. have classified strikes into two types: primary strikes
and secondary strikes.

(i) Primary Strikes:

These strikes are generally aimed against the employers with whom the dispute exists. They may
include the form of a stay-away strike, stay-in, sit-down, pen-down or tools- down, go-slow and
work-to-rule, token or protest strike, cat-call strike, picketing or boycott.

(ii) Secondary Strikes:

These strikes are also called the ‘sympathy strikes’. In this form of strike, the pressure is applied
not against the employer with whom the workmen have a dispute, but against the third person who
has good trade relations with the employer.

Lock-Outs
Lock-out is the counter-part of strikes. While a ‘strike’ is an organized or concerted withdrawal of
the supply of labor, ‘lock-out’ is withholding demand for it. Lock-out is the weapon available to
the employer to shut-down the place of work till the workers agree to resume work on the
conditions laid down by the employer. The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 defined lock-out as “the
temporary shutting down or closing of a place of business by the employer”.

Gherao
Gherao means to surround. It is a physical blockade of managers by encirclement aimed at
preventing the egress and ingress from and to a particular office or place. This can happen outside
the organizational premises too. The managers / persons who are gheraoed are not allowed to move
for a long time.
Sometimes, the blockade or confinements are cruel and inhuman like confinement in a small place
without light or fans and for long periods without food and water. The persons confined are
humiliated with abuses and are not allowed even to answer “calls of nature”.

Causes of Industrial Conflict:

There are some sauces that create industrial conflict .these causes may again be classified into
seven categories. In the following points the main and sub points of different crosses of conflict
have been discussed in short:
Economic Causes
If the stakeholders of the industrial sectors (like- labor, management etc) are affected economic
penury then the interrelationship, between or among the panics may deteriorate. For example- if
the employees cannot fulfill their basic needs with the economic condition they possess, then they
can try to protest against for fulfilling their economic and basic demand that ultimately creates
industrial conflict because sometimes government can fail to intervene or the management may
deny accepting the claims of the employees that integrate industrial conflict.
Political Causes
Political causes are one of the important reasons that can create industrial conflict. Several reasons
are responsible for creating Industrial conflict politically-
a) Instigation by political leaders.
b) High ambition ante trade union leaders.
c) Political liaison of the trade union leader for attaining personal benefit.
Social Causes
If the parties involved in the industrial activities are deprived or feel deprived for anything or any
measure taken by industrial leaders. Management or Government, then they can protest against the
injustice or go for movement that creates industrial conflict.
Technological Causes
If any changes in technology affect the employees, they can go for movement in fear that they may
lose the job if such technology is introduced. For example- if organization decides to go for
introducing automation or any technological instrument that need specialization or efficiency to
handle but the present employees may fail to fulfill the requirement, and then employees may
protest against such a change which can create industrial conflict.
Psychological Causes
If the intention of the employees is not to accept any change, on not to comply with any rule
enacted either by the organization or by the government then the employees will go for
movement and will protest against the change that can create industrial conflict.
Market Situation Causes
If the market situation is tough enough for the employees to cope with for high prices, high
inflation, high living standard etc. These can stimulate employees to go for movement to fulfill
their needs. As a result any disagreement between the employees and management leads to
conflict.
Legal Causes
If the salary or wages is not enough to fulfill the basic needs and to maintain a comfortable life,
then the employees will go for movement. And any disagreement by the authority or any lack in
implementation of law will lead to a serious conflict.

Negative Impact of Conflict:

Following are the points of negative impact of conflict:
Feeling of defeat

Conflict creates deprivation in the mind of employees as they remain in fear that they may be
defeated to others in terms of authority or power. This feeling may affect the level of performance
of employees, reduce morale, and increase dissatisfaction that ultimately affect the productivity of
the organization.

Distance

Conflict creates distance between or among employees that deteriorates the relationship among
them and create a chaotic condition within group or within organization.

Lack of confidence

Conflict induces lack of confidence among the employees that can reduce their morale and
dissatisfaction may uplift.

Labor turnover

Conflict increases labor turnover of the organization as the employees may have the organization
either to avoid conflict or to retain authority and status. That's why the more will be the labor
turnover as the employees will not be able to adapt themselves with such a conflicting situation.
Problem making attitude

Conflict gives raises the problem-making attitude on employees and they try to do the same tasks
repeatedly to hold power or to fulfill their own interests, such negative approach leads to a long-
term bad consequence of conflict and organization faces lease less problem relating to conflict and
the cost of conflict resolution reach to the peak.

Change in intention

Conflict may stimulate change in intention of the employees. It creates maunder standing in the
mind of employees and interrupt the general flow of performance.

Managing Industrial Conflict

Despite positive or negative impact of conflict, management must always try to resolve or at least
minimize conflict by adopting the following methods, conflict may be resolved or minimized or
we can say managed:

Avoidance

One of the ways by which management can resolve conflict organization is avoidance. That means
management is not interested to deal with conflict or if any conflict arises, a negligible importance
is given to handle. In such a case, other tactics can also be adopted secretly to resolve such a
conflict.

Smoothing

Another way by which conflict can be managed is smoothing. By creating smooth environment in
the organization, conflict handler can minimize the possibility of such a conflict. Organization can
do it by providing necessary facilities ' within the organization that reduces the dissatisfaction level
of employees, which ultimately reduces the possibility of conflict.

Forcing

Management can apply force to resolve conflict. By applying suitable force management can take
some negative approaches that can discourage employees not for creating conflict. For example-
termination, salary cut, lay off etc. can be helpful to reduce the level of conflict in the organization.

Compromise

Management can compromise through negotiation or agreement with the employees or employees’
representative i.e. trade union leaders. Because agreement between management and employee
unions can keep the conflict level as minimum as possible.
Changing behavior

Management can manage conflict by changing behavior of employees. This can be done by
providing training to the employees on conflict and conflict resolution technique. If employees are
trained well and they are convinced about the negative consequences of conflict, that may have an
effective influence on the behavior of employees. It will be conducive for the organization to
remain free of conflict in the long run.

Problem solving

Management can reduce the conflict by taking initiative of problem solving. With this approach
management can avoid conflict easily by solving the problems instantly. Any delay in problem
solving can create serious ambiguity or misunderstanding among employees. Any type of problem
should be solved as early as possible.

Structural change

Management can remove those structures that create conflict or leads to conflict. Organization can
reduce the organizational structure to reduce communication gap and ambiguity. So the structure
of the organization should be changed or redesigned in such a way that minimizes the possibility
of conflict.

Accommodation

All necessary support, facilities in terms of resources, equipment should be provided to the
employees so that accommodation is smooth enough and reduce conflict.

Competition

The exercise of competition has to be introduced within the organization so that employees always
try to improve their own quality to proof supremacy and to get promotion and to increase
productivity or to develop career. Thus different programs can be initiated that can increase
competition.