UNIT III

TRADE UNION ACT OF 1926

Before the emergence of industrialization on a massive scale, there were personal contracts
between the workers and employers. Therefore, no requirement for the evolution of any
machinery governing the relationship between workers and employers arose until then. But after
the establishment of modern factory system this relationship lost its significance due to large
scale industrialization which enticed employers to reduce the cost of production in order to
withstand the cut-throat competition in the market and maximize their profit by using
technologically more sophisticated means of production which in turn resulted in the rise of a
new class of workers who were completely dependent on the wages for their survival which
changed the existing employer and employee relationship in which the employees were exploited
by their employers. The conflict of interest between workers and employers and the distress of
workers resulted in the growth of various trade unions.

A trade union is an organized group of workers who strive to help the workers in the issues
relating to the fairness of pay, good working environment, hours of work and other benefits that
they should be entitled to instead of their labour. They act as a link between the management and
workers. In spite of being newly originated institutions, they have turned into a powerful force
because of their direct influence on the social and economic lives of the workers. To control and
manage the working of these trade unions different legislations regulating the same required. In
India Trade Unions Act of 1926 is a principal Act for controlling and managing the working of
trade unions. The present article aims at explaining and bringing forth various aspects of the Act.

History of Trade Unionism in India

In India trade unions have developed into an important platform for putting up the demands of
the workers. They have also turned into one of the most influential pressure groups, which is an
aggregate seeking to influence the government in framing legislation in favour of workers
without aspiring to become part of the government. As an organized institution, trade unionism
took its concrete shape after the end of World War 1. The trade unions in India are essentially the
product of modern large scale industrialization and did not grow out of any existing institutions
in society. The need for an organized trade union was first realized in 1875 by various
philanthropists and social workers like Shri Sorabji Shapaji Bengali and Shri N.M. Lokhandey
whose constant efforts resulted in the formation of trade unions like The Printers Union of
Calcutta (1905), the Bombay Postal Union (1907).

The setting up of textile and mill industries at the beginning of the 19th century in the presidency
towns of Bombay, Madras, and Calcutta gave impetus to the formation of industrial workforce
association in India. The Bombay Mill-Hands Association, founded by N.M. Lokhande in 1890
is the first labour association of India. The following years saw the rise and growth of several
other labour associations and unions in India like the Madras Labour Union which is the first
properly registered trade-union founded by B.P. Wadia in the year 1918, in the year 1920 the
country saw the growth of the Ahmedabad Textile Labourer’s Association in Gujarat which
turned into a union under the guidance of Mahatma Gandhi and is considered to be one of the
strongest unions in the country of that time because of the unique method of arbitration and
conciliation it had devised to settle the grievances of the workers with the employers. Since the
union followed the ideals of truth and nonviolence laid down by Mahatma Gandhi it was able to
secure justice to the workers in a peaceful manner without harming the harmony in the society.
In the same year, the first trade union federation All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) saw
the light of the day, it was formed after the observations made by the International Labour
Organization which highlighted the influence of politics on trade unions and associations and
how the same is detrimental for any economy to prosper.

The importance of the formation of an organized trade union was realized by nationalist leaders
like Mahatma Gandhi who to improve the employer and worker relationship gave the concept of
trusteeship which envisaged the cooperation of the workers and employers. According to the
concept, the people who are financially sound should hold the property not only to make such
use of the property which will be beneficial for themselves but should make such use the
property which is for the welfare of the workers who are financially not well placed in the
society and each worker should think of himself as being a trustee of other workers and strive to
safeguard the interest of the other workers.
Many commissions also emphasized the formation of trade unions in India for eg. The Royal
Commission on labour or Whitley commission on labour which was set up in the year 1929-30
recommended that the problems created by modern industrialization in India are similar to the
problems it created elsewhere in the world and the only solution left is the formation of strong
trade unions to alleviate the labours from their miserable condition and exploitation.

Well known Central Trade Union Organizations in India:

o All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC)

o Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS)
o Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU)
o Hind Mazdoor Kisan Panchayat (HMKP)
o Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS)
o Indian Federation of Free Trade Unions (IFFTU)
o Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC)
o National Front of Indian Trade Unions (NFITU)
o National Labor Organization (NLO)
o Trade Unions Co-ordination Centre (TUCC)
o National Mazdoor Union (NMU)

Definition of 'Trade Union' as per Trade union Act, 1926

• 2(h) “Trade Union” means any combination, whether temporary or permanent, formed
primarily for the purpose of regulating the relations between workmen and employers or
between workmen and workmen, or between employers and employers, or for imposing
restrictive conditions on the conduct of any trade or business, and includes any federation
of two or more Trade Unions: (ex. Cloth mill)

• Provided that this Act shall not affect—

• (i) any agreement between partners as to their own business;

 • (ii) any agreement between an employer and those employed by him as to such
employment; or

• (iii) any agreement in consideration of the sale of the goodwill of a business or of

instruction in any profession, trade or handicraft.

Important elements of Trade Union:

1. There must be combination of workmen

2. There must be trade or business; and

3. The main object of the Union must be to regulate relations of employers and
employees or to impose restrictive conditions on the conduct of any trade or business.

Functions of Trade Unions

• (1) Collective bargaining with the management for securing better work environment for
the workers/ employees.

• (2) Providing security to the workers and keeping check over the hiring and firing of
workers.

• (3) Helping the management in redressal of grievances of workers at appropriate level.

• (4) If any dispute/matter remains unsettled referring the matter for arbitration

• (5) To negotiate with management certain matters like hours of work, wages and medical
facilities and other welfare schemes.

Registration of Trade Union

 TU Act provides for registration, wherein the registration is voluntary.

 Registration grants the TU legal status of a body corporate.

  The Act provides with certain benefits and privileges to be sought if the TU gets itself
registered.

 Though, it is up to the TU to get itself registered under the Act or not. Whereas, in some
cases the TU is not allowed registration under the Act, like association of civil servants.

 Registration does not guarantee recognition of the TU by the concerned employer.

 Recognition is dealt with by different set of provisions under State enactments/guidelines

(Code of Discipline).

 This code of discipline guide the employers and workers to settle disputes making use of
the existing machinery and abstaining from taking direct action was evolved at the Indian
Labour Conference in 1958.

 The Code of Discipline lays down certain criteria for recognition of TU by the
management on a voluntary basis.

The four procedure involved in registration of trade unions are as follows:

1. Appointment of Registrar

2. Mode of Registration

3. Rights and Duties of Registrar

4. Legal Status of Registered Trade Union.

 1. Appointment of Registrar:

Section 3 of the Trade Union Act, 1926 empowers the appropriate Government to appoint a
person to be registrar of Trade Unions. The appropriate Government be it State or Central, as the
case may be is also empowered to appoint additional and Deputy Registrars as it thinks fit for the
purpose of exercising and discharging the powers and duties of the Registrar. However, such
person will work under the superintendence and direction of the Registrar. He may exercise such
powers and functions of Registrar with local limit as may be specified for this purpose.

2. Mode of Registration:

These applicants must be members of a trade union. According to section 4 of the Act, any seven
or more members of a Trade Union in accordance with the provisions of the Act may make an
application apply for registration of the trade union.

There are two conditions subsequent to the same:-

firstly no trade union of workmen shall be registered unless at least 10% or 100 of the
workmen, whichever is less engaged in the employment of the establishment are its members on
the date of making of its application, and

secondly no trade union shall be registered unless on the date of making of application,
minimum seven of its members who are workmen are employed in the establishment or industry.

Rights and Duties of Registrar:

Section 7 of the Act empowers the Registrar of Trade Union to make, if required so, further
enquiries on receipt of an application for registration to fully satisfy himself that the application
complies with the provisions of section 5. However, such enquiries can be made only from the
application and not from any other source.

The duties of the Registrar of Trade Unions in matters of registration of trade union are laid
down under Section 8 of the Act. On having being satisfied with the requirements for the
registration of the union, the Registrar shall register the trade union by entering in a register. The
letter to this effect will be issued to the Trade Union. In case of non-satisfaction of registrar with
the compliance of requirements, the refusal for registration will be issued to the trade union.

No time limit for the grant or refusal of registration has been prescribed in the Trade Union Act,
1926. However, there are legal directives issued by the Court to the Registrar of Trade Unions to
perform me statutory duty imposed upon him under sections 7 and 8 to deal with the application
of the Trade Union according to law at an early date

4. Legal Status of Registered Trade Union:

Upon the registration, a trade union assumes to a corporate body by the name under which it is
registered. A registered trade union shall have perpetual succession and its common seal. A
registered trade union is an entity distinct from the members of which, the trade union is
composed of It enjoys power to contract and to hold property both moveable and immoveable
and to sue and be sued by the name in which it is registered.

A trade union enjoys the following advantages after registration:

(i) A trade union after registration becomes a body corporate

(ii) It gets perpetual succession and common seal

(iii) It can acquire and hold both movable and immovable property

(iv) It can enter into a contract

(v) It can sue and be sued in its registered name

Benefits and Privileges under the TU Act

 A registered TU has been given immunity from prosecution for criminal conspiracy and
immunity from civil action as provided under Sections 17 and 18 of the Act respectively.

 An agreement in restraint of trade shall not be void or voidable between the members of
the registered TU only because the objects of the agreement are in restraint of trade as per
Section 19.

 After registration no other evidence is required to prove that the trade union is a trade
union. (Section 9)
  The rules and other documents of a registered TU become public documents maintained
at public office. (Section 6(1) and Regulation 17 of the Central Trade Union Regulation,
1938)

 Members and office-bearers of a TU can inspect the account books of the TU and list of
members as per the rules of the TU. (Section 20)

 Any person above age of 15 years may be a member of a TU and enjoy the benefits of a
member and execute all documents and receipts needed to be executed. (Section 21)

There are certain additional privileges and rights available for the recognized trade unions. Those
are: Sections of the act deals with recognition (Section 28-A to 28-I)

1. the right to sole representation of the workers in any collective bargaining;

2. to raise issues and enter into agreements with employers on general questions concerning
the terms and conditions of employment;

3. to collect membership fees and subscriptions payable by members to the union within the
premises of the undertakings or demand check off facility;

4. to put up notice board in the premises of the undertaking and affix notices relating to
meetings, statements of accounts and other announcements;

5. to discuss with employer the grievances of the workers; and

6. to nominate its representatives to the grievance committee or statutory and non-statutory

bipartite committees.

Recognition of the Trade Union is different from registration of the Trade Union. A registered
trade union is entitled to all protections, immunities, rights and privileges provided by the Trade
Unions Act, 1926, even if it is not recognized by the employer.

Funds to be created

The TUs have right to constitute two types of funds for distinct purposes:

General funds (Section 15) for:

Political Fund (Section 16)

Separate fund created from contribution specifically levied for and kept for this fund for civic
and political interests of its members:

Contribution to this fund would not be compulsory or would be a pre-requisite for admission to
the TU. Non-contribution to this fund must not amount to any disability on such member.

The Tamil Nadu Non-Gazetted Government Officers’ Union, Madras v The Registrar of
Trade Unions AIR 1962 Mad. 234

 ISSUE- Can Government Servants and other Non- Gazetted Officers form a Trade
Union?

 Section 2(g) of the Trade Union Act-

 "Trade dispute means any dispute between employers and workmen or between workmen
and workmen, or between employers and employers which is connected with the
employment or non-employment or the terms of employment or the conditions of labour,
of any person, and "workmen" means all persons employed in trade or industry whether
or not in the employment of the employer with whom the trade dispute arises."

 Section 2(h) of the Trade Union Act-

 "Trade Union means any combination whether temporary or permanent, formed

primarily for the purpose of regulating the relations between workmen and employers or
between workmen and workmen, or between employers and employers or for imposing
restrictive conditions on the conduct of any trade or business, and includes any
federation of two or more Trade Unions."

 JUDGEMENT BY MADRAS HIGH COURT-

 The Court held that-

 1. The civil servants are integrated with inalienable and Legal functions of the
Government which are sovereign in nature. The functions that are performed by them
 cannot be concluded as an ‘Industry’ as per the Industrial Dispute Act, 1947. Therefore,
these civil servants cannot be concluded as ‘Workmen’.

 2. Further, sections 2(h) and 2(g) does not apply to these civil servants, therefore they
cannot form a ‘Trade Union’ or claim any dispute as ‘Trade Dispute’

 3. The court further held that as per Section 16 and Section 22 of the Trade Union Act
allows permits to form a separate fund for political purposes and office bearers to be
connected with the Industry. However, both of these things cannot be done by
Government Officers. This concludes that Government Servants do not come under this
Act.

Rights, Duties and Liabilities

Rights of a registered trade union:
1. Right of Admission: Admission as a member of trade union is not an absolute right. A
registered trade union may impose certain qualifications and restrictions for admissions
subject to the provisions of the Trade Unions Act and Rules as well as any other law in
force.
2. Right of Representation: A trade union can represent the employees in any industrial
dispute and in case of individual dispute, with the written authorization of the employee.
With such authorization, a trade union can represent before any conciliation officer,
industrial tribunal, labour courts etc.
3. Right to Contract: A registered trade union, being a legal person, can enter into
agreements and contracts on its own name.
4. Right to own property: A registered trade union can purchase and own movable and
immovable property in its own name.
5. Right to Sue: A trade union is a juristic person. It can sue, argue before any labour courts,
authorities and other courts on behalf of itself, and on behalf of its members.
6. Right to inspect books: Section 20 confers an important right to the members of the trade
union. The office bearers or the members can inspect the books of account at such time as
may be provided for in the rules of the trade union. The members, however, have no right
to take copies of such books of account.
 7. Right to Amalgamate: According to Section 24 of the Trade Unions Act, 1926, two or
more registered trade unions may amalgamate as one trade union with or without
dissolution or division of funds of such unions.

Duties and Liabilities:

1. A registered trade union has a duty to inform the Registrar of Trade Unions by sending a
notice to that effect as to the change of address of the registered trade union.
2. The Act imposes on the registered trade union, duty to spend the funds (general fund,
political fund), specifically allotted for the purposes as stated in the provisions of the act.
3. A registered trade union is under a duty to see that not less than 1/2 of the total number of
its office bearers in the case of unorganized sector and 1/3 or 1/5 whichever is less in
other sectors (according to amendment in 2001) must be persons actually engaged or
employed in an industry with which the trade union is connected with. Appropriate
governments by an order (general or special order) exempt a trade union from this
provision.
4. Every registered trade union must submit every year, to the registrar of trade unions, a) a
general statement, audited in the prescribed manner of all receipts and expenditures
during the year ending 31st December, b) an audited statement of its assets and liabilities
as on 31st December, c) a statement showing change of office bearers made by the trade
union during that year and, d) a copy of the rules of the trade union amended up to date.
5. Whenever any alteration is made in the rules of the registered trade union, a notice
regarding the altered rules must be submitted to the registrar of trade unions within 15
days of such alteration.
6. Failure to submit the above said returns, or give notice of alterations, shall make every
office bearer or other persons who are responsible for such submission of particulars,
liable to pay fine which may extend to Rs.5 and in case of continuing default additional
fine of Rs. 5 for each week not exceeding Rs. 50 in total.
7. Any person who gives false information to any member of the registered trade union with
an intention of deceiving him is liable to be punished with fine which may extend to
Rs.200.
 8. While electing a person as a member of the executive committee or for any other office
as office bearer must be confirmed that such person has completed the age of 18 and such
person is not convicted of any offence involving moral turpitude. (In case of any
conviction and a period of 5 years has elapsed since his release then he is qualified to be
elected for these posts.)
9. A minister or a person holding an office of profit in the Union or State shall not be
elected as a member of executive or other office bearer of a registered trade union
(according to amendment in 2001).

IMMUNITY

Section 17: Criminal conspiracy in Trade Disputes

Section 17 of the Act states that no member of a trade union can be held liable for criminal
conspiracy mentioned under sub Section 2 of Section 120B regarding any agreement made
between the members of the union in order to promote lawful interests of the trade union.

Section 18: Immunity from civil suits in certain cases

Section 18 of the Act immunes the members of trade union from civil or tortious liabilities
arising out of any act done in furtherance or contemplation of any trade disputes.

For example. In general, a person is subject to tortious liability for inducing any person to breach
a contract. But, the trade unions and its members are immune from such liabilities provided such
inducement is in contemplation or furtherance of any trade disputes. Further, the inducement
should be awful and should not involve any aspect of any violence, threat or any other illegal
activity.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

Industrial disputes between the employee and employer can also be settled by discussion and
negotiation between these two parties in order to arrive at a decision. This is also commonly
known as collective bargaining as both the parties eventually agree to follow a decision that they
arrive at after a lot of negotiation and discussion. According to Beach, “Collective Bargaining is
concerned with the relations between unions reporting employees and employers (or their
representatives). It involves the process of union organization of employees, negotiations
administration and interpretation of collective agreements concerning wages, hours of work and
other conditions of employees arguing in concerted economic actions dispute settlement
procedures”.

According to Flippo, “Collective Bargaining is a process in which the representatives of

a labor organization and the representatives of business organization meet and attempt to
negotiate a contract or agreement, which specifies the nature of employee-employer union
relationship”. The essence of Collective Bargaining is bargaining between interested parties
and not from outside parties”.

According to an ILO Manual in 1960, the Collective Bargaining is defined as: “Negotiations
about working conditions and terms of employment between an employer, a group of employees
or one or more employers organization on the other, with a view to reaching an agreement.” It is
also asserted that “the terms of agreement serve as a code defining the rights and obligations of
each party in their employment relations with one another, if fixes large number of detailed
conditions of employees and during its validity none of the matters it deals with, internal
circumstances give grounds for a dispute counseling and individual workers”. Collective
Bargaining Involves:

(i) Negotiations

(ii) Drafting

(iii) Administration

(iv) Interpretation of documents written by employers, employees and the union representatives

(v) Organizational Trade Unions with open mind.

Purposes/objectives of collective bargaining

  To provide an opportunity for the workers to voice their complaints and grievances
regarding the working conditions.
 To pave the way for the employer and workers to reach an amicable solution peacefully
without having any ill will towards one another.
 To sort out all the disputes and conflicts between the employer and worker.
 To prevent any dispute which is likely to take place in the future by mutually agreeing on
the contract.
 To foster a peaceful and stable relationship between the workers and the organization.

Forms of Collective Bargaining:

The working of collective bargaining assumes various forms. In the first place, bargaining may
be between the single employer and the single union, this is known as single plant bargaining.
This form prevails in the United States as well as in India. Secondly, the bargaining may be
between a single firm having several plants and workers employed in all those plants. This form
is called multiple plants bargaining where workers bargain with the common employer through
different unions. Thirdly, instead of a separate union bargaining with separate employer, all the
unions belonging to the same industry bargain through their federation with the employer’s
federation of that industry. This is known as multiple employer bargaining which is possible
both at the local and regional levels. Instances in India of this industry-wide bargaining are found
in the textile industry. The common malady of union rivalry, small firms and existence of several
political parties has given rise to a small unit of collective bargaining. It has produced higher
labour cost, lack of appreciation, absence of sympathy and economic inefficiency in the realm of
industrial relationships. An industry-wide bargaining can be favorable to the economic and social
interests of both the employers and employees.

Pre-Requisites for Collective Bargaining:

Effective collective bargaining requires the following prerequisites:

(i) Existence of a strong representative trade union in the industry that believes in constitutional
means for settling the disputes.

(ii) Existence of a fact-finding approach and willingness to use new methods and tools for the
solution of industrial problems. The negotiation should be based on facts and figures and both
the parties should adopt constructive approach.

(iii) Existence of strong and enlightened management which can integrate the different parties,
i.e., employees, owners, consumers and society or Government.

(iv) Agreement on basic objectives of the organization between the employer and the employees
and on mutual rights and liabilities should be there.

(v) In order that collective bargaining functions properly, unfair labor practices must be avoided
by both the parties.

(vi) Proper records for the problem should be maintained.

(vii) Collective bargaining should be best conducted at plant level. It means if there are more
than one plant of the firm, the local management should be delegated proper authority to
negotiate with the local trade union.

(viii) There must be change in the attitude of employers and employees. They should realize that
differences can be resolved peacefully on negotiating table without the assistance of third party.

(ix) No party should take rigid attitude. They should enter into negotiation with a view to
reaching an agreement.

(x) When agreement is reached after negotiations, it must be in writing incorporating all term of
the contract. It may be emphasised here that the institution of collective bargaining represents a
fair and democratic attempt at resolving mutual disputes. Wherever it becomes the normal mode
of setting outstanding issues, industrial unrest with all its unpleasant consequences is minimised.

Some of the salient features of collective bargaining are:

1. It is a Group Action: Collective bargaining is a group action as opposed to individual action.
Both the parties of settlement are represented by their groups. Employer is represented by its
delegates and, on the other side; employees are represented by their trade union.

2. It is a Continuous Process: Collective bargaining is a continuous process and does not end
with one agreement. It provides a mechanism for continuing and organized relationship between
management and trade union. It is a process that goes on for 365 days of the year.

3. It is a Bipartite Process: Collective bargaining is a two party process. Both the parties—
employers and employees— collectively take some action. There is no intervention of any third
party. It is mutual given-and-take rather than take-it-or-leave-it method of arriving at the
settlement of a dispute.

4. It is a Process: Collective bargaining is a process in the sense that it consists of a number of

steps. The starting point is the presentation of charter of demands by the workers and the last step
is the reaching of an agreement, or a contract which would serve as the basic law governing
labour-management relations over a period of time in an enterprise.

5. It is Flexible and Mobile and not Fixed or Static: It has fluidity. There is no hard and fast rule
for reaching an agreement. There is ample scope for compromise. A spirit of give-and-take
works unless final agreement acceptable to both the parties is reached.

6. It is Industrial Democracy at Work: Collective bargaining is based on the principle of

industrial democracy where the labour union represents the workers in negotiations with the
employer or employers. Industrial democracy is the government of labour with the consent of the
governed—the workers. The principle of arbitrary unilateralism has given way to that of self-
government in industry. Actually, collective bargaining is not a mere signing of an agreement
granting seniority, vacations and wage increase, by sitting around a table.

7. It is Dynamic: It is relatively a new concept, and is growing, expanding and changing. In the
past, it used to be emotional, turbulent and sentimental, but now it is scientific, factual and
systematic.

8. It is a Complementary and not a Competitive Process: Collective bargaining is not a

competitive process i.e., labour and management do not coopt while negotiating for the same
object. It is essentially a complementary process i.e., each party needs something which the other
party has, namely, labour can put greater productive effort and management has the capacity to
pay for that effort and to organise and guide it for achieving the enterprise’s objectives. The
behavioural scientists have made a good distinction between “distributive bargaining” and
“integrative bargaining”. The former is the process of dividing up the cake which represents
what has been produced by the joint efforts of management and labour. In this process, if one
party wins something, the other party, to continue the metaphor of the cake, has a relatively
smaller size of the cake. So it is a win-lose’ relationship. The integrative bargaining, on the other
hand, is the process where both the parties can win—each party contributing something for the
benefit of the other party.

9. It is an Art: Collective bargaining is an art, an advanced form of human relations. Means of

Collective Bargaining: Generally, there are four important methods of collective bargaining,
namely, negotiation, mediation, conciliation and arbitration for the settlement of trade disputes.
In this context R.F. Hoxie said that arbitration is often provided for in collective bargaining
under certain contingencies and for certain purposes, especially when the parties cannot
reach agreement, and in the interpretation of an agreement through negotiation. Conciliation is a
term often applied to the art of collective bargaining, a term often applied to the action of the
public board which attempts to induce collective bargaining. Mediation is the intervention
usually uninvited, of some outside person of body with a view of getting conciliation or to force
a settlement, compulsory arbitration is extreme mediation. All these things are aids or
supplement to collective bargaining where it breaks down. They represent the intervention of
outside parties.

Recognition of Trade Union

Registration And Recognition Of Trade Union

Although no specific right is granted to any trade union with respect to the right to be
recognized, it has become crucial in India to develop a mechanism wherein a trade union is
recognized formally by the employer. Recognition is the process through which the employer
accepts a particular trade union as having a representative character and hence, will be willing to
engage in discussions with the union with respect to the interests of the workers. This process is
important so as to ensure smooth collective bargaining and stability of industrial relations.

On the other hand, registration of a trade union carries certain inherent benefits with it.

A registered trade union is deemed to be a body corporate, giving it the status of a legal entity
that may, inter alia, acquire and hold property, enter into contracts, and sue others.A registered
trade union is also immune from certain contractual, criminal and civil proceedings. However,
registration is optional and not mandatory. Generally, registration of trade unions under the TU
Act does not automatically imply that a particular trade union has gained recognition status
granted by the employer. Unless different Indian states have specific legal provisions pertaining
to recognition of trade unions, it is generally a matter of agreement between the employer and
trade union. Ideally, a trade union must obtain legitimacy through registration under the TU Act
and then seek recognition as a sole bargaining agent either under the appropriate law or an
employer-employee agreement.