Unit 6

Industrial Relations
 Industrial Disputes/Conflicts
• 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
Preventive measures of Industrial Conflict
Labour Welfare Officer

Tripartite and Bipartite Bodies

Standing Orders

Grievance Procedure

Collective Bargaining
 Labour Welfare Officer
• In every factory wherein five hundred or more workers are ordinarily
employed at least one labour welfare officer must be appointed
• If the number of workers are in excess of 2500 an additional Welfare
officer also needs to be appointed

• The labour officer coordinates between management and workers

Functions - supervision of welfare measures, counselling workers,

advising management, liaising etc
 Tripartite and Bipartite Bodies
• The objective of tripartite and bipartite bodies is to bring the parties
together for mutual settlement of dispute in the spirit of cooperation
and goodwill
• Tripartite bodies – Indian Labour conference, Standing labour
committee, Steering committee on wages etc
• Bipartite bodies – bodies having equal representation from
management and workers. Such bodies are only consultative bodies
that aim to foster continuous discussions to prevent conflict
Bipartite Bodies
• an important bipartite body is the works committee. In India works
committee is established by law and applicable in establishments
where 100 or more workers are employed. Constituted by ensuring
equal representation from management and employees but total
number not to exceed 20.
• Yet another bipartite body is the Joint Management Council. JMCs
were to deal with all matters except those falling within the area of
collective bargaining. Constituted at the plant level that has not less
than 500 workers. Scope – administering welfare measures,
supervision of safety and health schemes, scheduling of working
hours, rewards for suggestions etc
 Grievance Procedure
• Has been discussed in the previous session

Grievance redressal machinery/process is put in place to ensure that

problems are nipped in the bud itself
Industrial Conflicts - Classification

Interest/Economic Grievance
Dispute Disputes/Rights
Dispute
Deadlock in negotiation
Day to day grievances

Unfair Labour practices Recognition Dispute

Interference with the exercise of
right to organise, discriminatory Non recognition of Trade
treatment Union as a bargaining agent
 Standing Orders
• Most of the industrial disputes arise because of the working
conditions
• Hence it was made obligatory that the working conditions should be
governed by the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act of
1946
• Standing orders regulate conditions of employment from stage of
entry to exit
• It also acts as a code of conduct for employees by laying down
certain do’s and don’ts
 Collective Bargaining
• Has been discussed in the previous session

• This involves both the union and management representatives meet

and negotiate a labour agreement that looks into areas covering
wages, hours of work, working conditions etc
 Settlement Machinery of Industrial Conflict
Methods of Settlement of
Industrial Conflict

Conciliation Compulsory arbitration /

Investigation (Court of Adjudication (Labour
Mediation Conciliation Officer Voluntary arbitration
Inquiry) courts, Industrial Tribunals,
Board of Conciliation National Tribunals)
 Investigation
• Conducted by a board or court appointed by the government (court of inquiry)
• Objective is not really settlement of a dispute but to enquire into and reveal the
causes of dispute
• Can be voluntary or compulsory
• Voluntary – if both parties submit an application for investigation
• Compulsory – if the government appoints a court of inquiry to investigate the matter without
the consent of the parties

• the court of inquiry has a time limit of six months from the commencement of
the inquirywithin which it must submit its report to the appropriate government
 Mediation
• An outsider assists in negotiation with the consent of both parties

• Acts only as a messenger and does not impose his will or judgement

• Tries to get the disputing parties to arrive at a voluntary agreement

• Helps offer a chance to save face and it would be shown as a favour for a friend!
(mostly in those cases where in one party knows that they have a weak case and is not
backing out due to pride)

• In mediation the parties involved propose the terms and conditions in the agreement
 Conciliation
• Conciliation is an extension of collective bargaining with the assistance of a third party
• Services of a neutral third party are used in a dispute to help arrive at an amicable
settlement.
• A conciliation officer may be appointed for a specified industry in a specified area or for
one or more specified industries and either permanently or for a limited period. The CO is
normally the Assistant Commissioner of Labor (ACL) or the Labor Commissioner of the state
• The conciliator plays a more direct role in negotiation
• In conciliation most times the conciliator is the one who proposes the terms and conditions in
the agreement
• Where conciliation fails, board of conciliation takes over.
• The appropriate Government may as the occasion arises by notification in the Official
Gazette constitute a Board of conciliation for promoting the settlement of an industrial
dispute. A Board shall consist of Chairman and two or four other members
 Conciliation
• Conciliation machinery consists of
• Conciliation officer
• appointed by government, his duty is administrative in nature and not
judicial
• Submits report to government within 14 days of commencement of
proceedings
• If an agreement is reached between the parties then it is binding on the
parties
• Board of conciliations
• Appointed by the government
• Role is consultative like the conciliation officer
 Voluntary arbitration
• The word arbitration means settlement of industrial disputes between two or more
parties by means of a decision of an impartial body (arbitrator) when efforts in the
process o f conciliation and mediation have failedThe parties to the dispute voluntarily
submit the dispute to an arbitrator
• Legal sanctity to this mode of settlement of dispute was given in 1956 when section 10 A
was introduced in the Industrial Disputes Act, thus Arbitration is judicial in nature
whereas conciliation is advisory in nature
• In July 1967 the government appointed a National Arbitration Promotion Board with a
tripartite composition. This board compiles and maintains up-to-date panels of suitable
arbitrators for different areas and industries
• Arbitration is voluntary if the parties to the dispute have failed to settle their
differences by negotiation and conciliation, agree to submit them to arbitration as
prescribed under Section lOA of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947
 Compulsory Arbitration/Adjudication

• Adjudication – When reconciliation and arbitration fail governments resort to

adjudication, i.e., referring to a labour court, industrial tribunal or national
tribunal for the settlement of disputes
• In compulsory arbitration the parties are forced to arbitration by the state
when the parties to the dispute have failed to arrive at a settlement by
voluntary method or when there is a situation of national emergency or when the
country is passing through economic crisis or when the parties to the dispute are
not well balanced or when the unions are weak and ill-organized or when the
employers are very well-organized and more powerful or when industries of
strategic importance are involved or when there is a general public
dissatisfaction with the existing industrial relations
• an arbitration tribunal which after considering the facts and arguments
submitted to it, makes an award and the decision of the tribunal is binding
 Compulsory Arbitration/Adjudication
• The Industrial Disputes Act 1947 provides for a three tier system of
adjudication
• Labour courts – disputes in schedule II – may be constituted by the state
government. The decision of a labour court can be appealed in the high court
(single bench, followed by full bench) and later if not satisfied to the supreme
court.
• Industrial tribunals – disputes in schedule II and III - may be constituted by the
state government
• National tribunals – disputes of national importance or ones that effect more
than one state – constituted by central government
 Composition of labour court, industrial
tribunal and national tribunal
• All three are adhoc bodies and consist of a single member called the
presiding officer
• In the case of tribunals the government may additionally appoint two
persons as assessors to advise the tribunal
• This is done when technical expertise is required for settlement of the
dispute
 Labour laws related to social security
measures
Social security is the protection provided by the society to its members
through a series of public measures against the economic and social distress
that is otherwise caused due to stoppage or substantial reduction in earnings
resulting from sickness, maternity, employment injury, occupational diseases,
unemployment, invalidity, old age and death.
• Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948
• Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923
• Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952
• Employees’ Pension Scheme, 1995 (EPS)
• Maternity Benefit Act, 1961
• Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972
 Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948
• The promulgation of Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 (ESI Act), by the Parliament was the first major
legislation on social Security for workers in independent India

• The task of protecting 'employees' against the impact of incidences of sickness, disablement and death
due to employment injury and to provide medical care to insured persons and their families. The ESI
Scheme applies to factories and other establishment's viz. Road Transport, Hotels, Construction sites etc

• 10 or more people should be employed in such industries, but in some states the limit is 20.

• Employees drawing wages upto Rs.15,000/- a month, are entitled to social security cover under the ESI
Act. ESI corporation has increased this to Rs. 20,000/-

• Scheme funded by contributions from both employer and employee (4.75% of the wages and 1.75%
respectively)
 Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923
• An Act to provide for the payment by certain classes of employers to their workmen of
compensation for injury by accident.
• The idea is to provide workmen and their dependents some relief in case of accidents
arising out of and in the course of employment
• The entire responsibility is placed on the employer to pay compensation, neither the
government nor the workman has to contribute for the same.
• Establishments that are covered under ESI are not covered in this act.
• No wage limit for employee to become eligible
• The Act applies to workers of the employees in any capacity specified in Schedule (ii) of
the Act which includes mines, plantations, construction work and certain other and
specific category of railway servers.
• Amount of compensation to be paid will be determined by the nature of the injury
caused
 Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous
Provisions Act, 1952
• An Act to provide for the institution of provident funds (pension fund and
deposit-linked insurance fund) for employees in factories and other
establishments in any industry specified in Schedule I and in which twenty or
more persons are employed and any other establishment employing 20 or more
persons or class of such establishment which the Central Govt. may notify in the
Official Gazette
• The employees become eligible to participate in the fund on his/her joining the
establishment
• Employee’s Contribution: 12% of the monthly pay
 Employees' Pension Scheme 1995
• Employees' Pension Scheme 1995 or EPS-95 is a social security scheme which was
introduced in November 19, 1995 by the EPFO. The scheme entitles the
employees working in the organised sector for a pension after their retirement at
the age of 58 years
• Employees eligible for EPF are also eligible for EPS
• Both the employee and the employer contribute 12 per cent of the employee’s
basic salary and Dearness Allowance (DA) to the EPF. While the entire portion of
employee’s contribution goes to EPF, the employer’s contribution goes to EPS at a
rate of 8.33 per cent.
 Maternity Benefit Act, 1961

• An Act to regulate the employment of women in certain establishment for certain

period before and after child-birth and to provide for maternity benefit and certain
other benefits.
• Under the scope of Section 2(1)(a), the Act applies to all establishments including:
• factories, plantations, mines, shops or establishments covered under the ambit of law having 10 or
more than 10 employees. (As provided by the 2017 amendment) This includes the private sector as
well.
• A woman, to be eligible for the maternity benefits under the Act, has to be employed in
the establishment for not less than 80 days in the twelve months immediately preceding
the expected delivery of the woman
• 26 weeks, for a woman with up to 2 surviving children. 12 weeks, for a woman already
having 2 or more children
• Other benefits under this law include:
• Option to work from home
• Crèche facilities
 Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972

• Companies with a workforce of 10 or more than 10 employees on a

single day in the previous 12 months are subject to pay gratuity
• As per the Gratuity Act 1972, An employee needs to provide service
to his employer for at least five years or more.
References
• https://in.reuters.com/article/us-maruti-unrest/insight-dead
ly-india-car-factory-riot-sounds-alarm-bells-for-industry-idI
NBRE8740QM20120805

• Essentials of Human Resource Management and Industrial

Relations by P.Subba Rao

• Human Resource Management by Gary Dessler and Biju

Varkkey
• Industrial relations and labour laws by B D Singh, Excel Books
Thankyou