Conditions for Healthy IR

Every organization strives to induce good industrial relations. To ensure industrial peace and avoid
laobur unrest like strikes, gheraos, demonstrations, slogan shouting, work stoppages etc.; healthy
work relationships must exist for the development and promotion of harmonious labour-
management relations which has become very important in the modern industrial society.

Importance of good industrial relations and concern for the welfare of the labour is
best expressed in the words of Dorabji Tata as follows –

“The welfare of the labouring classes must be one of the first cares of every employer.
Any betterment of their conditions must proceed more from the employers downward
rather than be forced up by demands from below, since labour, contented, well-
housed, well-fed and generally well-looked after, is not only an asset and
advantageous to the employer but serves to raise the standard of industry and labour in
the country.”

Good industrial relations depend upon a large number of factors/conditions.

1. History of Industrial Relations in an Enterprise:

Every industry moves ahead with its good or bad history of industrial relations.
Harmonious relationship between the workers and management marks the good
history of the enterprise. While strikes and lockout characterise the bad history of the
business. History, good or bad, established once will take time to change.

Once militancy (strikes, lockouts etc.,) is established as a conduct of operations, there

is a tendency to continue. If harmonious relationships are established, it will
perpetuate. This, however, does not mean that militancy situation cannot be converted
into a harmonious relationships or vice-versa. Rather what it means is that probability
of peaceful relations is greater where mutual understanding exists – and the
probability of conflict is greater when industrial conflict has been accepted as a
normal conduct of business.

2. Strong Trade Unions:

Strong and enlightened trade unions help to promote the status of labour without
jeopardising the interest of management. Trade unions maintain good relations with
management and avoid militancy and strikes situation. Enlightened trade unions
induce the workers to produce more and persuade the management to pay more.

They mobilize public opinion on vital labour issues and help the government in
enacting progressive labour laws. They develop right kind of leadership, avoid
multiplicity of unionism and union rivalry. Hence, a strong, responsible and
enlightened trade union promote healthy industrial relations.
3. Negotiating Skills of Management and Workers:

Well experienced and skillful negotiations create a bargaining environment conducive

to the equitable collective agreements. The representatives of management and
workers must recognize the human element involved in collective bargaining process.

Both parties must have trust and confidence in each other. They should be able to
perceive a problem form the opposite angle with an open mind. A constructive and
positive approach from both the parties must be present to honour the agreements in
the right spirit.

4. Economic Factors:

Economic satisfaction of workers is one of the important condition for good industrial
relations. Reasonable wages and benefits in commensurate with other industries must
be paid by the employer. Economic need is the basic survival need of the workers.

5. Social Factors:

Social factors such as – social values, social groups and social status also influence the
industrial relations. The employment relationship is not just an economic contract. It is
a joint venture involving a climate of human and social relationships wherein each
party (workers and management) fulfills his needs and contributes to the needs of
others. The supportive climate is essentially built around social factors. The influence
of social factors gets changed with the progress of industrialisation.

Models of IR

1. Dunlop’s Industrial Relations System Model- Four Interrelated Elements:

i. Actors:

a. Specialized government agencies.

b. Management, non-managerial employees and their representatives.

ii. Shared Ideology:

a. Beliefs within the system which not only define the role of each actor or groups of
actors but also define the view that they have of the role of other actors in the system.
If the view is compatible-stable IR system and other wise.

b. Set of ideas and beliefs held by the actors.

c. Helps to bind or integrate the system together.

iii. Contexts:
Influence and constraints on the decisions of the actors which emanate from other
parts of society, such as technology, market, budgetary and the locus of power in the
society.

iv. Rules:

(i) Procedural

(ii) Substantive

(iii) Distributive

(iv) The regulatory framework developed by a range of process and presented in

variety of forms which expresses the terms and nature of the employment relationship.

Criticisms of the Dunlop Model:

(i) Descriptive

(ii) Lacks ability to predict outcomes/ relationships

(iii) Underestimates importance of power and conflict in employment relationship

(iv) Static.

(v) Cannot explain rapid decrease in unionization especially in the U.S.

Main Aspects of IR

The main aspects of industrial relations are:

(1) Promotion and development of healthy labour management relations;

(2) Maintenance of industrial peace and avoidance of industrial strife; and

(3) Development of industrial democracy.

(1) Promotion and Development or Healthy Labour-Management Relations:

One of the aspects of industrial relations is to promote and develop healthy relations
between the employer and employees and pre-supposes.

(a) Spirit or collective bargaining and willingness to take recourse to voluntary

arbitration. The very feeling of collective bargaining makes them assume equal status
in the industry. This feeling may further industrial peace.

(b) The existence or strong, well organised, democratic and responsible trade unions
and also associations or the employers in the industry which may ensure job security
to workers and their participation in the decision-making and give labour a dignified
role in the society. These associations, tend to create grounds for negotiations,
consultations and discussions on mutual basis leading to good labour- management
relations.

(c) Welfare Work. Whether voluntary or statutory provided by the state, trade unions
and the employers do create, maintain and improve good and healthy labour-
management relations.

(2) Maintenance of Industrial Peace:

Industrial peace presupposes the absence of industrial strife. Such peace can be
established only when the following rights and privileges are enjoyed by the State and
facilities for bipartite or tripartite consultation machinery for resolving disputes if any,
are provided –

(a) Machinery for the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes should be
established through legislative and administrative enactment.

(b) The provision of the bipartite and tripartite forums for the settlement of disputes
must be made. Various codes, model standing orders and procedures to resolve
disputes are necessary.

(c) Appropriate Government must have sufficient power to refer the disputes to
adjudication or arbitration when it feels it necessary in the interest of the industry, or
of the country. The Government must not allow any group in the industry to stop
production due to strikes or lock-outs.

(d) Implementation Cells and Evaluation committees must be established, having

power to look into the implementation of various agreements, settlements and awards
and also to violation of statutory provisions under various labour laws.

(3) Development of Industrial Democracy:

The idea of ‘industrial democracy’ is that the labour must have the right to associate
with the management in running the industry.

3 Main Participants in Industrial Unit

Basically there are two parties in the employment relationship, i.e., the labour and the
management. Over the years, the Government has come to play a major role in
industrial relations and they have established legal and non-legal measures for cordial
industrial relations in the country.

These three parties of industrial relations interact with the environment that prevails in
the industry at any time. Good industrial relations are the outcome of- (a) Healthy
labour management relations, (b) Existence of industrial peace and settlement of all
disputes in such a manner that there are no strikes or lockouts and (c) Labour
participation in industry which is referred as Industrial democracy.
In an industrial unit, different people are performing the different tasks.

We can have three parties or participants or actors in an industrial unit:

1. The workers and their unions,

2. Employees and their associations, and

3. Government.

1. Workers and their Unions:

The total work plays an important role in industrial relations. The total work includes
working age, educational background, family background, Psychological factors,
social background, culture, skills, attitude towards other work, etc. Workers
organisation prominently in trade union activities.

The main purpose of trade unions is to protect the workers economic interest through
collective bargaining and by bringing pressure on management through economic and
political practices. Trade union factors include leadership, financial, activities, etc.

2. Managers and their Associations:

The prominent role is of work group, the differences in their sizes, constitutions and
the degree of specialization they press upon. Of course, there is the necessary
provision for mutual communications for the structure of status and authority and for
such other organisation as trade unions and employer’s associations.

3. Government:

Government plays a balancing role as a custodian of the nation; government exerts its
influence on industrial relations through its labour policy, industrial relations policy,
implementing labour laws, the process of conciliation and adjudication by playing the
role of a mediator, etc. It tries to regulate the activities and behaviour of both
employee’s organisations and employer organisations.

Thus the three groups of employees, employers and the government work within the
social and economic environment that prevails at a particular time. Whatever
industrial relations system may be in vogue, it has in its framework the intricate rules
and regulations which enforce the workplace and the working community.

The various systems might comprise of different forms of such rules and regulations.
There might be laws and awards of different courts, committees or tribunals. There
might be agreements written or sanctioned by custom, usage, practice or tradition or
there might be the outcome of government policies or intervention.

conclusion