MODULE III

INDUSTRIAL UNREST
 INDUSTRIAL UNREST
• The conflict between employers and workers in industrial undertakings

• Industrial workers display their protest against employers in the form of

Strike
Gherao
Boycott
Picketing

•Employers show their might by

 Retrenchment
 Lockout
 Lay off
INDUSTRIAL UNREST
• Causes industrial recession

• Decline in national income

• Any activity which tends to increase the strain between capital and labour

• Industrial unrest may be organised or unorganised

• Unorganised industrial unrest – low morale, low productivity, frustration

• Organised industrial Unrest- Strikes, Lockouts

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES
Sec 2 (k) of the Industrial Disputes Act 1947 defines industrial dispute
as follows:

“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 or with the conditions of labour of any person”
CLASSIFICATION OF INDUSTRIAL
DISPUTES
1. Interest or Economic Disputes

2. Grievance or Rights Disputes

3. Disputes over Unfair Labour Practices

4. Recognition Disputes
Interest or Economic Disputes
• Disputes relating to the determination of new terms and
conditions of employment for the general body of workers.

• Originate from trade union demands for improvement in

wages, fringe benefits, job security or other terms of
employment and are settled through collective bargaining
Grievance or Rights Disputes
• Relating to individual workers or a group of workers arising
from day to day working relations in the undertaking

• With regard to payment of wages, working time, overtime,

promotion, transfer, dismissal, job classification and
fulfilment of obligations relating to safety and health laid
down in the agreement.

• Labour courts and Tribunals adjudicate over grievance

disputes
Disputes over Unfair Labour
Practices
• Discrimination against workers on the ground that they are trade
union members or participate in trade union activities, recruitment of
new workers during a strike, failure to implement an award and
indulging in acts of violence

• Disputes are resolved according to the procedure laid down in the

Industrial Disputes Act 1947
Recognition Disputes
• Disputes arising due to non recognition of a trade union by
management or employer’s organisation for collective
bargaining.

• In many countries, guidelines for trade union recognition

have been laid down in voluntary Codes of Discipline or
Industrial Relations Charters accepted by employer’s and
worker’s organisations
Causes of Industrial Disputes

1. Economic Causes

2. Political Causes

3. Personal causes

4. Indiscipline
Economic Causes
• Demand for increase in wages

• Demand for higher bonus

• Demand for higher gratuity and other retirement benefits

• Demand for paid holidays

• Demand for house rent allowance, medical allowance, conveyance allowance and night
shift allowance

• Better working conditions

• Reduction of working hours

Political Causes
• Trade unions are controlled by various political parties

• Their leadership vests in the hands of persons who are interested in

achieving their political interests rather the interests of workers.

• Political parties engineer strikes, gheraos and bandhs to demonstrate

their political strength
Personal causes
• Arises on account of personal problems of workers relating to
dismissal, retrenchment, transfer or promotion

Indiscipline
Disputes may occur because of indiscipline and violence on the part of
workers

To curb indiscipline and violence, lock outs are resorted to by the

management
Weapons of Labour against
Industrial Dispute
1. Strike

2. Boycott

3. Picketing

4. gherao
strike
• A cessation of work by a body of persons employed in any industry
acting in combination or a concerted refusal under a common
understanding of a number persons who are or have been so
employed to continue to work or to accept employment. (Industrial
disputes Act 1947)

• Strike is a temporary cessation of work by a group of employees in

order to express their grievance or to enforce a demand concerning
changes in working environment.
Types of strikes
• Primary strikes – against the employer with whom the dispute exists

• Secondary strikes – not against the employer with whom the workers
have a dispute, but against some third person who has good relations
with him and employer incurs a loss
 Primary Strikes
1. Stay away strike
- workers do not come to work place during the prescribed working
hours
- Rallies and demonstrations to draw the attention of the employer to
their grievances
2. Stay in strike
- workers will be present at their place of work
- but do not work
3. Sit down strike
- workers take possession of the property of the employer, stop
production and refuse access to the owners or others desiring to work
- workers do not leave the plant till a settlement is arrived at for their
demands
4. Tool down strike and pen down strike
- remaining on the job in the work place
- factory workers lay down their tools
- office employees lay down their pen
5. Token or protest strike
- to inform the employer about the feelings of the employees on any
decision taken by the employer.
- short duration strike
- to exert moral persuasion and not to disrupt the business of the
employer
6. Lightning or Cat Call strike
- suddenly announced by workers without notice or at very short notice
- because of some provocation by the employer involving employer
employee relations
7. Go slow strike
 intentionally reduce the speed of work and rate of production
while engaged in the factory
 no cessation of work
 union does not want to go on full fledged strike
 to communicate to the employer about the feelings of the workers
 cost of production goes up, delivery schedule gets upset, raw
materials and machinery are adversely affected
8. Hunger strike
 strike with fasting either by leaders of the union or by some or
all workers for a limited period.
 to create sympathy of the employer and to attract the attention
of the public
It is resorted to in the following cases:
a. Withdrawal of disciplinary action against some workers
b. release of arrested workers
c. enforcing demands for improvement in wages, DA and gratuity
9. Sympathetic Strike
- A strike by workers of one industry in sympathy with the
workers of another industry who are already on strike
- striking workmen have no demands or grievances of their own
against their employer
- unjustifiable invasion of the rights of employers and is generally
unlawful
10. General Strike
- strike by all or most the unions in a particular region or industry
to force the employers to accept the demands common to all the
workers.
- to express genaralised protest by the workers
 BOYCOTT
Decision by the workers not to use the products of the company

An appeal to the public not to use the products of the company

Management is forced to accept the demands of workers since

boycott affects the marketability of its products.

Persuasive in nature, but negative in approach

 PICKETING
• Marching or patrolling of the workmen in front of the premises of the
employer carrying and displaying signs, banners and placards in
connection with the dispute for the purpose of preventing others from
entering the place

• To draw the attention of the public

•
• Persuading others not to enter the premises, but to join strike

• Peaceful picketing is lawful

 Gherao
• Means “encirclement” or “to surround”

• Blocking exits and forcing them to stay inside their cabins like prisoners

• To inflict physical and mental torture to the person gheraoed so as to accept the
demands of the workers

• Creates law and order problem

• Getting consent under pressure

• Person who is gheraoed is subjected to humiliation

• Punishable offence under section 339or 340 of IPC
• Punishment like simple imprisonment or fine
LEGAL STRIKES
It should be held for economic demands such as basic pay, dearness
allowance, increment, leave and other fringe benefits

The demands of the workmen should be reasonable and legitimate

Existing facilities are withdrawn or provident fund is closed

There is any unfair labour practice on the part of management

There is no response from Management in spite referring a demand and

issuing a reminder
ILLEGAL STRIKES
A strike launched for political reasons

A strike launched for unreasonable demands

A strike in a public utility service without six weeks notice

A strike conducted during any conciliation proceedings before a

conciliation officer

A pen down or sit down strike by a body of workers after entering the
place of work
Prevention of strikes
Management should adopt well defined, precise, clear and progressive human resource
management policies for the maintenance of good industrial relations in the undertaking

Mgt should ensure an effective administration and timely implementation of HR Policies

Mgt should build an effective two way communication system which will help in the development
of mutual trust between workers & Mgt

Mgt should provide humane conditions of work along with suitable welfare facilities for the
benefit of the workers

Mgt should adopt a suitable and speedy grievance redressal procedure for solving the problems
of workers

Mgt should give recognition to a representative union

Mgt should ensure joint consultation at different levels and encourage collective bargaining
 Weapons of Management against
Industrial Dispute
I. Employer’s Association – Employers may form employer’s Union to
oppose the workers and to put pressure on the trade unions

II. Lock out – temporarily closing down the undertaking to accept the
demands made by them or to withdraw the demands made by
them on him

III. Termination of service – The employer may terminate the services

of those workers who are on strike by blacklisting them
Lay off
• The failure, refusal or inability of an employer on account of

 shortage of coal, power or raw material or

 the accumulation of stocks or
 the breakdown of machinery or
 natural calamity to give employment to a workman whose name is in
muster roll of his industrial establishment and who has not been
retrenched

Lay off is a temporary non employment of a workman

Workmen are not thrown out of employment

They are provided with partial wages for a short period

 Distinction between Lay off and
Lock out
Lay off Lock out
• Some workers are refused • All employees are refused work
employment

• A measure to force the workers

• To cope up with temporary inability to accept the point of view of
of an employer to offer the employer
employment

• Not connected with industrial • Connected with industrial

dispute dispute
Retrenchment
• Termination by the employer of the service of a workman for any
reason
• Discharge of surplus labour or staff by the employer
 Lock out Retrenchment

• Due to industrial Dispute • Not related to industrial dispute

• To pressurise the workmen to • To dispense with surplus labour

accept the employer’s demands
• Total severance of IR between
• Suspension of IR between employer and employee
employer and workmen
• Permanent
• Temporary
Impact of Industrial Disputes
1. Disturb industrial Peace
 Plant capacity utilisation falls below the optimum level

 Costs go up

Absenteeism and Labour turnover increase

Industrial discipline breaks down

Decreases production
2. Lower morale
 Interest of workers in work is diminished leading to higher
absenteeism and labour turnover

3. Resistance to change
 Employees lose faith in the management and resist all changes
necessary for the survival and growth of the industrial organisation

4. Frustration among employees

 With uncomfortable IR, employees find it difficult to satisfy their needs.

This will lead to frustration among them
5. Lower Profitability

 Productivity of the workers goes down, wastages increase and quality

products decreases
6. Agony to workers

 Workers and their families have to face financial difficulties

 Prolonged industrial disputes leads to industrial sickness and

closure of enterprise. As a result, workers will lose their jobs

7. Impact on the economy

 Lower productivity, higher wastage and lower quality

 Supply of goods and services to the society suffers leading to a

lower standard of living for the general public
 Industrial Peace
• Absence of industrial unrest or the existence of harmonious relationship
between labour and management
Conditions for industrial peace
 Strong trade unions

 Employers should have a progressive outlook

 Workers and management should have faith in collective bargaining

 Workers’ participation in management should be encouraged

 Open two way communication

 Steps for Promotion of
1. Mutual Trust
Industrial Peace
2. Effective communication

3. Fair Personnel Policies

4. Proactive Management – anticipate problems & take timely action

5. Strong trade unions

6. Industrial democracy

7. Implementation of Agreements

8. Role of Government – enforcing various labour laws, can intervene for speedy settlement of