Recognising and derecognising a trade union

Meaning and types of trade union

recognition
A trade union is said to be recognised once an employer has agreed to negotiate with it on pay
and working conditions on behalf of a particular group of workers.

The subsequent negotiation process is known as collective bargaining, with the group of workers
the union represents referred to as the bargaining unit.

If an employer agrees to recognise a trade union the employer has certain legal obligations
towards the union and its members - see the page in this guide on the consequences of trade
union recognition.

Voluntary trade union recognition

The most common way a union can gain recognition for collective bargaining purposes is by the
employer simply agreeing to recognise it voluntarily.

In practice this means the union becomes recognised by the employer without using any legal
procedures. See the page in this guide on voluntary recognition of a trade union.

Statutory trade union recognition

If an employer and trade union find they are unable to come to a voluntary recognition agreement,
a trade union can make an application for statutory recognition. This only applies where the
employer, together with any associated employers, employs 21 or more workers.

See the page in this guide on statutory recognition of a trade union - starting the procedure.

Note that there can be voluntary agreements even after the union has triggered the statutory
process - see the page in this guide on voluntary recognition within the statutory procedure.

Use our interactive tool to work out what you need to do about an application for trade
union recognition.

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Subjects covered in this guide

• Introduction
• Meaning and types of trade union recognition
• Voluntary recognition of a trade union
• Statutory recognition of a trade union - starting the procedure
 • Statutory recognition of a trade union - applying to the Central Arbitration Committee
• Statutory recognition of a trade union - deciding on the bargaining unit
• Statutory recognition of a trade union - recognition ballots
• Voluntary trade union recognition within the statutory procedure
• The consequences of trade union recognition
• Statutory derecognition of a trade union - an introduction
• Statutory derecognition of a trade union owing to reduced size of workforce
• Statutory derecognition of a trade union owing to lack of support for bargaining
arrangements
• Statutory derecognition of a trade union owing to falling union membership in the
bargaining unit
• Derecognition of a non-independent trade union
• Statutory derecognition of a trade union - derecognition ballots
• Procedure where the original bargaining unit is no longer appropriate or has ceased to exist
• Workers' rights in relation to trade union recognition or derecognition

Trade Union Registration and Recognition in India

by V S RAMA RAO on OCTOBER 11, 2010

in HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

The Trade unions act of 1926 provides for registration of trade unions by the
designated registrar of trade unions. Registered trade unions have certain
obligations to meet like maintenance of accounts and filing of returns. Non-
compliance may invite cancellation of registration. However the act is silent about
the recognition of the trade union by the firm for the purpose of collective
bargaining. Various state governments like Maharashtra have enacted
legislations like the Maharasthra Recognition of Trade Union (MRTU) and the
Prevention of unfair labor practices (PULP) Act of 1971 to recognize unions
based on their real strength. With support from courts, many organizations have
used the secret ballot method to identify and recognize unions as representatives
of workers. Other methods followed are membership verification conducted by
government machinery or a check off system where employee declares union
allegiance to company and allow deduction of membership fee from the salary.
The Supervisor’s Role:

Supervisors are an employer’s first line of defense when it comes to the

unionizing effort. They are often in the best position to sense evolving
employees’ attitude problems, for instance, and to discover the first signs of
union activity. Unfortunately there’s another side to that coin: they can also
inadvertently take actions that hurt their employer’s union related efforts.

Supervisors therefore need special training. Specifically they must be

knowledgeable about what they can and can’t do to legally hamper organizing
activities. Unfair labor practices could (1) cause the NLRB to hold a new election
after your company has won a previous election, or (2) cause your company to
forfeit the second election and go directly to contract negotiation.

In one case a plant superintendent reacted to a union’s initial organizing attempt

by prohibiting distribution of union literature in the plant’s lunchroom. Since
solicitation of off duty workers in non work areas is generally legal, the company
subsequently allowed the union to post union literature on the company’s bulletin
board and to distribute union literature in nonworking areas inside the plant.
However, the NLRB still ruled that the initial act of prohibiting distribution of the
literature was an unfair labor practice one not made right by the company’s
subsequent efforts. The NLRB used the superintendent’s action as one reason
for invaliding an election that the company had won.

The election:

The election is held within 30 to 60 days after the NLRB issues its decision and
direction of Election. The election is by secret ballot; the NLRB provides the
ballots; voting booth, and ballot box and counts the votes and certifies the
results.

The union becomes the employee’s representative if it wins the lection, and
winning means getting a majority of the votes cast, not a majority of the total
workers in the bargaining unit. Also keep in mind that if an employer commits an
unfair labor practice the NLRB may reverse a no union election. As
representative of their employer, supervisors must therefore be careful not to
commit unfair practices. Several things influence whether the union wins the
certification election. Unions have a higher probability of success in geographic
areas with a higher percentage of union workers, in part because union
employees enjoy higher wages and benefits. High unemployment seems to lead
to poorer results for the union, perhaps because employees fear that unionization
efforts might result in reduced job security or employer retaliation. Unions usually
carefully pick the size of their bargaining unit (all clerical employees in the
company, only those at one facility and so on because it’s clear that the larger
the bargaining unit, the smaller the probability of union victory The more workers
vote, the less likely a union victory probably because more workers who are not
strong supporters vote. The union is important too. The Teamsters union is less
likely to win a representation election than other unions, for instance.