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Trade unions:
Trade Unions means an association of workers in a particular craft or industry. In Legal Sense it means an association formed primarily for the purpose of regulating the relations between workmen & employers or between workmen & workmen or between employers & employers. According to L J Hanson, a trade union is essentially an organisation of the workers. Its main function is to enable the workers to act together, the individual by himself being in a weak bargaining position to negotiate with employers, that is, to make possible collective bargaining, strike being their weapon of last resort to be used only after negotiations have broken down
Trade Union Sec. 2(h): It means any combination, whether temporary or permanent formed (1) Primarily for the purpose of regulating the relations (a) Between workmen and employees or, (b) Between workmen and workmen or, (c) Between employers and employers OR (2) For imposing restrictive conditions on the conduct of any trade or business
Object of an association determines whether it is trade union. It is primarily the object of an association or combination which determines whether it is a trade union or not. In Rangaswamy Registrar of Trade Unions, Madras (1962), it was held that a union of employees at Raj Bhawan of a State, which included among its members, the household staff, peons, chauffeurs, tailors, carpenters, gardeners, masons and sweepers could not be registered as a trade union on the ground that the employees were not workmen engaged in any industry, trade or business of the employer.
Growth of Unions:
The formation in 1920 of the All India Federation, namely, the All India Trade Union Congress, was the result of these recommendations. The passing of the Trade Unions Act, 1926 gave formal recognition to the workers right to organize. After the independence, particularly the period of 1947-1957, witnessed a rapid increase in the number of unions, and increase brought about variety of factors such as changed outlook towards labour organisations & the new spirit of awakening in the country. - The Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) formed by the Congress Party; - The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) formed by Communist Party of India; - The Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS) formed by Socialists; - The Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) Affiliated by BJP party. ( Multiplicity of trade unions within industry, financial stability, linking of trade union to politics)
Appointment of Registrars:
A State Government appoints a person to be the Registrar of Trade Unions for the State. Trade Unions have to act under the superintendence and control of the Registrar. State Government will also defines the local limits within which they shall exercise & discharge the powers & functions so specified. Where an Additional or Deputy Registrar exercises & discharges the powers & functions of a Registrar in an area within which the registered office of a trade union is situated, the Additional or Deputy Registrar is deemed to be the Registrar in relation to the trade union for the Act.
Applicants ceasing to be members or dissociating not to affect application unless their number is more than half:
f. the payment of a subscription by the members of the trade union which shall not be less than 25 paise per month per member; g. the manner in which the members of the executive and other office-bearers of the trade union shall be appointed & removed; h. the safe custody of the funds of the trade union, and annual audit in such a manner as may be prescribed , of the accounts thereof, and adequate facilities for the inspection of the account books by the office bearers and members of the trade union; i. the manner in which the trade union may be dissolved. ( The Registrar has the power to call for further requirements or particulars for satisfying himself that an application for registration complies with the provisions Sec.7)
In Gopal Upadhaya v. Union of India (1987): The Army Medical Corps Civilian Employees Union, Lucknow was registered on Jan 1964 with the Registrar of Trade Unions, UP, under the provisions of the Trade Unions Act. The members of the union were carpenters, tailors, boot makers, gardeners, sweepers, cooks, etc., who were described as campfollowers of the Army. The registration of the trade union was cancelled on Jan 1978 by the Registrar of Trade unions on the ground that such registration has ceased to be valid in the view of the decision of the Supreme Court. It was said that the registration was initially granted under a mistake and it was, therefore, cancelled.
c. Maintenance of any person who is member of any legislative body constituted under the constitution or of any local authority; d. The holding of political meetings of any kind, or the distribution of political literature or political documents of any kind. 3. Immunity from punishment for criminal conspiracy: ( Sec. 17 ) An office bearer or member of the registered trade union shall not be liable to punishment under Sec. 120-B (2) of the Indian Penal Code, in respect of any agreement made between the members for the purpose of furthering any such object of the trade union on which general funds may be spent. But if the agreement is an agreement to commit an offence, no immunity can be claimed. E.g. A strike is accompanied by violence, assault, intimidation, threat etc., this exemption is not available. Likewise a union leader is not entitled to claim immunity form punishment for breach of discipline.
4. Immunity from civil suits: ( Sec. 18) A suit or legal proceedings shall not be maintainable in any Civil Court against any trade union or any office-bearer or member thereof in respect of any act done in furtherance of a trade dispute to which a member of the trade union is a party. This protection is available only on the ground that such act induces some other persons to break a contract of employment or; such act interferes with the trade, business or employment of some other person; The union members or office bearers will be liable for any acts which is not covered with Sec. 18 like acts of violence or vandalism, or a deliberate trespass.
5. Enforceability of Agreement: (Sec. 19) An agreement in restraint of trade is void because it is opposed to or is in violation of public policy. But under Sec.19 of this act an agreement between the members of a registered trade union is restraint of trade shall not be void or voidable. It means agreement made between the members of a registered Trade Union not to accept employment unless certain conditions as to pay, hours of work, etc are fulfilled, will not be void or voidable. 6. Right to inspect the Books of Trade Union: (Sec. 20) Sec. 20 provides that the accounts books of a registered trade Union & the list of members of the trade union shall be open for inspection by an officer or member of the trade union at such time as may be provided for in the rules. The object of conferring the right on office-bearers and members is that they satisfy themselves as to the genuineness of members and of the accounts of the union.
7. Right of Minors to be the Members: ( Sec. 21) Any person who has attained the age of 15 years can become a member of the registered trade union, & will enjoy all the rights of a member, but he cannot hold any office in the union unless he has attained the age of majority. 8. Right to Amalgamate: (Sec. 24) A trade union has the right to amalgamate to form a larger union or federation of unions. Such amalgamations or federations shall have the same rights as their member trade union.
2. Objects on which general funds may be spent: ( Sec. 15) a. The payment of salaries, allowances and expenses to office-bearers of the trade union; b. The payment of expenses for the administration of the trade union, including audit of the accounts of the general funds of the trade union; c. The expenses in prosecuting of any legal proceeding to which the trade union or any member is a party, undertaken for the purpose of securing or protecting any rights of the trade union; d. The conduct of trade disputes on behalf of the trade union or any members: e. The compensation of members for loss arising out of trade disputes;
f. The allowances to members or their dependants on account of death, old age, sickness, accidents or unemployment of such members; g. The provision of educational, social, or religious benefits for members or for the dependants of members; h. To upkeep of a periodical published mainly for the purpose of discussing questions affecting employees or workmen as such; i. The payment of contributions to any cause intended to benefit workmen in general. ( should not excess 1/4th of the combined total of the gross income for that financial year ) ( Any other expenses will be treated as Unlawful and Ultra vires. )
3. Constitution of a fund for political purposes: (Sec. 16) A registered Trade Union may constitute a separate fund out of contributions separately levied for or made to that fund. Out of this fund, payment may be made for the promotion of the civic & political interests of its members in furtherance of any civic or political objects enumerated in Sec 16 of the Act. 4. Proportion of Officers to be connected with the industry: ( Sec. 22) Not less than one-half of the total number of the office-bearers of every registered trade union must be persons actually engaged or employed in the industry with which the trade union is connected. The other half of the officebearers may be social or political workers.
5. Returns: ( Sec. 28 ) Every registered trade union shall send annually to the Registrar a general statement, audited in the prescribed manner, of all receipts & expenditure during the year ending on the 31st Day of December. It shall also send a statement of assets & liabilities on that date. It shall also send the statement showing all changes of office-bearers made by the trade union during the year.
6. Disqualifications of office-bearers of trade Union: (Sec. 21-A) A person shall be disqualified for being chosen as, & for being, a member of the executive or other office-bearer of a registered trade union if - He has not attained the age of 18 years; - He has been convicted by a Court in India for any offence involving moral turpitude & sentenced to imprisonment.
Office Bearers:
Sec. 2(b) defines the term Office Bearer includes any member of the executive of the Trade Union. But an auditor is not deemed to be an office bearer of the Trade Union. Sec. 22 requires that at least half of the total number of office bearers of a registered Trade Union shall be persons actually engaged or employed in an industry with which the Trade Union is connected. The rest of the members may be honorary or temporary. A Trade Union has the right to remove any of the office bearers but the power of removal must be exercised by the Union Judiciously & the rules of natural justice must be followed, e.g. - The official sought to be removed must be supplied with sufficient grounds & reasons for his removal to enable him to defend himself; - He must also be given the opportunity of appearing & defending himself against the charges; & - The decision of removal arrived at any Union must be in good faith & after a fair hearing of the case.
Collective Bargaining:
Collective Bargaining is a process of negotiating between management & workers represented by their representatives for determining mutually agreed terms & conditions of work which protect the interest of both workers & the management. OR Collective Bargaining is a technique adopted by the organisations of workers & employers collectively to resolve their differences with or without the assistance of a third party. Its ultimate aim is to reach some settlement acceptable to both the parties involved in labour-management relations.
4. Negotiation Process: Collective Bargaining is a negotiation process & is a device used by wageearners to safeguard their interests. It is an instrument of an industrial organisation for discussion & negotiation between the 2 parties.
2. It benefits both employer & employee: The negotiation arrived at is acceptable to both parties the employer & the employees. 3. Employer-regulating device: From the unions point of view collective bargaining agreements ensure that managements do not take any unilateral decision. In other words collective bargaining is an employer-regulating device, a method of guaranteeing the rights & immunities of the workers by limiting the employers freedom of action. A collective bargaining agreement develops a sense of responsibility & of self-respect among the workers and is a guarantee towards wage protection etc. 4. It is adjustable to the changing conditions: A dynamic environment leads to changes in employment conditions. This require changes in organisational processes to match with the changed conditions. Among other alternative available, collective bargaining is found as a better approach to bring changes more amicably.
5. It facilitates the speedy implementation of decisions arrived at collective bargaining: The direct participation of both parties- the employer & the employees- in collective decision making process provides an in-built mechanism for speedy implementation of decisions arrived at collective bargaining.
- Trade Unions: Like In a democratic country like ours, employees should have fundamental rights to form trade unions for protecting their interests. More the stronger the trade union is, the more the effective collective bargaining & vice-versa. - Problem Solving Attitude: Both the parties while negotiating should adopt a problem solving or compromising attitude to reach an agreement. Neither party should adopt fighting attitude. The negotiating teams should follow give & take approach. - Continuous Dialogue: Collective bargaining sometimes may not reach to an agreement. Instead there may be deadlock. In such case dialogue must not end but continue with problem solving approach. Keeping the controversial issues aside for the time being may help narrow down disagreement & continue the dialogue. - Honoured & fairly implemented: Once an agreement is reached, it should be put down in writing. It must be hounoured & fairly implemented.
- Poor Finance: The financial stability was very weak as the members were less & subscriptions made by these small size trade union members were also small & the trade unions cannot undertake welfare activities. There were also absence of paid office bearers in trade unions. - Politicalisation: A serious defect of the Trade Union movement in India is that the leadership has been provided by outsiders especially professional politicians. Leaders being affiliated to one or the other party interests of their party was given more importance rather than the protecting more interests. In many cases the political leaders possess little knowledge of the background of labour problems, fundamentals of trade unionism, the techniques of industry & even little general education. - Multiplicity of Unions: Trade Unionism in India is also characterised by multiplicity of unions based on creed, cast, religion. The implication of multiplicity of trade unions is that it leads to unions rivalry in the organisation. It also contributes to fragmentation to workers leading to small-sized unions.
- Free from Political Influence: One Of the reasons of its failure is the trade union leadership in the hands of politicians who have more concern for their political ideologies than for the interest of working class. By freeing the political influence we can strengthen the trade unions. By making these union leaders a full-time paid officers of the union having qualities such as literate, organising capacity, hardworking & patience.
- Adequacy of Funds: Due to lack of adequate funds the workers movements/strikes did not prolong & ended in failure. Therefore, the maintenance of strike funds by union is a necessity. This strike fund would be used to help workers during strikes as Strike Pay. This will not only strengthen the bargaining position of the unions, but they will also get the loyalty of the workers.
- Warfare Activities for Workers: The trade unions may effectively start activities such as the provision of day schools for children, crches at work place, night schools for adults, cooperative stores, gymnasiums etc. These efforts help make workers loyal to their unions. ( INTUC, Hindustan Mazdoor Sewak Sangh)