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Strikes Causes and Types

A strike is a collective cessation of work by employees to pressure employers into meeting their demands, as defined by the Industrial Disputes Act of 1947. Strikes can arise from various causes, including dissatisfaction with company policies and wage issues, and can take different forms such as economic strikes, sympathetic strikes, and general strikes. The document outlines the types of strikes and their characteristics, emphasizing their role as a powerful tool for labor associations.

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58 views3 pages

Strikes Causes and Types

A strike is a collective cessation of work by employees to pressure employers into meeting their demands, as defined by the Industrial Disputes Act of 1947. Strikes can arise from various causes, including dissatisfaction with company policies and wage issues, and can take different forms such as economic strikes, sympathetic strikes, and general strikes. The document outlines the types of strikes and their characteristics, emphasizing their role as a powerful tool for labor associations.

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lawyernareshchandar
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Faculty-Dr.S.

Mirza
Paper-HC-02
STRIKE

A strike is a very powerful weapon used by trade unions and other labour
associations to get their demands accepted. It generally involves quitting of work by
a group of workers for the purpose of bringing the pressure on their employer so
that their demands get accepted. When workers collectively cease to work in a
particular industry, they are said to be on strike.

According to Industrial Disputes Act 1947, a strike is “a cessation of work by a


body of persons employed in an industry acting in combination; or a concerted
refusal of any number of persons who are or have been so employed to continue to
work or to accept employment; or a refusal under a common understanding of any
number of such persons to continue to work or to accept employment”.
This definition throws light on a few aspects of a strike. Firstly, a strike is a referred
to as stoppage of work by a group of workers employed in a particular industry.
Secondly, it also includes the refusal of a number of employees to continue work
under their employer.
In a strike, a group of workers agree to stop working to protest against something
they think is unfair where they work. Labours withhold their services in order to
pressurize their employment or government to meet their demands. Demands made
by strikers can range from asking for higher wages or better benefits to seeking
changes in the workplace environment. Strikes sometimes occur so that employers
listen more carefully to the workers and address their problems.

Causes of Strikes:

Strikes can occur because of the following reasons:


1. Dissatisfaction with company policy
2. Salary and incentive problems
3. Increment not up to the mark
4. Wrongful discharge or dismissal of workmen
5. Withdrawal of any concession or privilege
6. Hours of work and rest intervals
7. Leaves with wages and holidays
8. Bonus, profit sharing, provident fund and gratuity
9. Retrenchment of workmen and closure of establishment
10. Dispute connected with minimum wages

Types of Strikes:

i. Economic Strike:Under this type of strike, labours stop their work to enforce their
economic demands such as wages and bonus. In these kinds of strikes, workers ask
for increase in wages, allowances like traveling allowance, house rent allowance,
dearness allowance, bonus and other facilities such as increase in privilege leave
and casual leave.

ii. Sympathetic Strike:When workers of one unit or industry go on strike in sympathy


with workers of another unit or industry who are already on strike, it is called a
sympathetic strike. The members of other unions involve themselves in a strike to
support or express their sympathy with the members of unions who are on strike in
other undertakings. The workers of sugar industry may go on strike in sympathy
with their fellow workers of the textile industry who may already be on strike.
iii. General Strike: It means a strike by members of all or most of the unions in a
region or an industry. It may be a strike of all the workers in a particular region of
industry to force demands common to all the workers. These strikes are usually
intended to create political pressure on the ruling government, rather than on any
one employer. It may also be an extension of the sympathetic strike to express
generalized protest by the workers.
iv. Sit Down Strike:
In this case, workers do not absent themselves from their place of work when they
are on strike. They keep control over production facilities. But do not work. Such a
strike is also known as ‘pen down’ or ‘tool down’ strike. Workers show up to their
place of employment, but they refuse to work.
They also refuse to leave, which makes it very difficult for employer to defy the
union and take the workers’ places. In June 1998, all the Municipal Corporation
employees in Punjab observed a pen down strike to protest against the non-
acceptance of their demands by the state government.
v. Slow Down Strike:
Employees remain on their jobs under this type of strike. They do not stop work,
but restrict the rate of output in an organized manner. They adopt go-slow tactics to
put pressure on the employers.
vi. Sick-Out (Or Sick-In):
In this strike, all or a significant number of union members call in sick on the same
day. They don’t break any rules, because they just use their sick leave that was
allotted to them on the same day. However, the sudden loss of so many employees
all on one day can show the employer just what it would be like if they really went
on strike.
vii. Wild Cat Strikes:
These strikes are conducted by workers or employees without the authority and
consent of unions. In 2004, a significant number of advocated went on wild cat
strike at the City Civil Court premises in Bangalore. They were protesting against
some remarks allegedly made against them by an Assistant Commissioner.

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