An Industrial Law Presentation

ByFYBMS (II semester). Rahila Khan (31125) Jackson Lobo (31133) Subhan Khan (31126) Poornima Kumble (31123) Bhakti (31127) Roja Merala (31132)

Trade Union Act (1926)

Introduction
O Trade union is a voluntary organization of workers pertaining to

a particular trade, industry or a company and formed to promote and protect their interests and welfare by collective action. O They are the most suitable organisations for balancing and improving the relations between the employer and the employees. O They are formed not only to cater to the workers' demand, but also for inculcating in them the sense of discipline and responsibility.

Definition
O Section 2(h) of the trade unions act 1926 has defined a trade

union as : 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.

Features Of Trade Unions

O

O O

O O

It is an association either of employers or employees or of independent workers. They may consist of :O Employers association (eg., Employers Federation of India, Indian paper mill association, etc.) O General labor unions O Friendly societies O Unions of intellectual labor (eg, All India Teachers Association) It is formed on a continuous basis. It is a permanent body and not a casual or temporary one. They persist throughout the year. It is formed to protect and promote all kinds of interests economic, political and social-of its members. The dominant interest with which a union is concerned is, however, economic. It achieves its objectives through collective action and group effort. Negotiations and collective bargaining are the tools for accomplishing objectives. Trade unions have shown remarkable progress since their inception; moreover, the character of trade unions has also been changing. In spite of only focusing on the economic benefits of workers, the trade unions are also working towards raising the status of labors as a part of industry.

Objectives
O To improve the economic lot of employees by securing for O O O O O

O
O

them better wages. To secure better working conditions for the workers. To secure bonus for the employees from the profit of the concern. To resist schemes of the management which reduce employment, e.g., rationalisation and automation. To secure welfare of employees through group schemes which give benefit to every employee. To portect the interest of employees by taking active participation in the management. To secure social welfare of the employees. To secure organisational stability , growth and leadership.

Registration of Trade union.

O O

O O O

The Act provides for the registration of the trade unions with the 'Registrars of Trade Unions' set up in different States, like the Office of Registrar (Trade Union) set up by the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi. For registration of a trade union, seven or more members of the union can submit their application in the prescribed form to the Registrar of trade unions. The application shall be accompanied by a copy of the 'rules of the trade union' and a statement giving the following particulars (section 6) :(i) Names, occupations and addresses of the members making the application; (ii)The name of the trade union and the address of its head office; (iii) The titles, names, ages, addresses and occupations of the office bearers of the trade union as per the format given in the Trade Unions Act 1926. The Registrar, on being satisfied that the Union has complied with all the requirements of this Act, shall register the trade union.(section 7) Thereafter, it shall issue a certificate of registration in the prescribed form as a conclusive evidence of registration of that trade Union. The registered trade unions (workers & employers) are required to submit annual statutory returns to the Registrar regarding their membership, general funds, sources of income and items of expenditure and details of their assets and liabilities, which in turn submits a consolidated return of their state in the prescribed proforma to Labour Bureau, Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Rights of Registered Trade union

O

O O

A trade union must have a general fund & under section15, its objects to be spend on the payment of salaries & allowances to the union officials and for the administrative expenses, audit, conduct of trade disputes, life insurance for members. The general funds of a registered trade union shall not be spent on any other objects than those specified in the Act. Also, a registered trade union may constitute a separate fund, from contributions separately levied for or made to that fund, for the promotion of the civic and political interest of its members. No member shall be compelled to contribute to such fund and a member who does not contribute to the said fund shall not be excluded from any benefits of the trade union, or placed in any respect either directly or indirectly under any disability or at any disadvantage as compared with other members of the union by reason of his contribution to the said fund. The Labour Bureau on receiving the annual returns from different States/Union Territories, consolidates the all India statistics and disseminates them through its publication entitled the 'Trade Unions in India' and its other regular publications.

Immunity
(a. Criminal conspiracy Sec.17)
O

No office-bearer or member of a registered trade union shall be liable to punishment under 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 as specified in the Act, unless the agreement is an agreement to commit an offence.

(b. Civil suit Sec.18)

O

No suit or other legal proceeding shall be maintainable in any civil court against any registered trade union or any office-bearer or member thereof in respect of any act done in contemplation or furtherance of a trade dispute to which a member of the trade union is a party on the ground only that such an act induces some other person to break a contract of employment, or that it is in interference with the trade, business or employment of some other person or with the right of some other person to dispose of his capital of his labour as he wills.

(c. Miscellaneous Sec.20)

O

The account books of a registered trade union and the list of members thereof shall be open to inspection by an office-bearer or member of the trade union at such times as may be provided for in the rules of trade union.

Disqualification of the office bearers: A person shall be disqualified for being chosen as, and for being a member of, the executive or any other office-bearer or registered trade union if- (i) he has not attained the age of eighteen years; (ii) he has been convicted by a court in India of any offence involving moral turpitude and sentenced to imprisonment, unless a period of five years has elapsed since his release. O Rights of the Unions: 1. A registered trade union may, with the consent of not less than two-thirds of the total number of its members and subject to the provisions of of the Act, change its name.(Sec23.) 2. The change in the name of a registered trade union shall not effect any of its rights or obligation or render defective any legal proceeding by or against the union, and any legal proceeding which might have been continued or commenced by or against it by its former name may be continued by its new name. .(sec.26) 3. Any two or more registered trade unions may become amalgamated together as one trade union with or without the dissolution or division of the funds of such trade unions or any of them, provided that the votes of at least one-half of the members of each or every such trade union entitled to vote are recorded, and that at least sixty percent of the votes recorded are in favour of the proposal.(sec.25) 4. Such an amalgamation shall not prejudice any right of any such unions or any right of a creditor or any of them.

Offences & Penalties

O

Every office-bearer or other person bound by the rules of the trade union shall be punishable with the payment of fine, if:i. Default is made on the part of any registered trade union in giving any notice or sending any statement or other document as required by or under any provision of this Act; or ii. Any person wilfully makes, or causes to be made, any false entry in, or any omission from, the general statement or in or from any copy of rules or of alterations of rules sent to the Registrar;(sec.31) or iii. Any person who, with intent to deceive, (a)gives to any member of a registered trade union or (b)to any person intending or applying to become a member of such trade union any document purporting to be a copy of (i) the rules of the trade union or (ii) of any alterations to the same which he/ she knows, or has reason to believe, is not a correct copy of such rules or (iii) alterations as are for the time being in force, or (c) any person who, with the like intent, gives a copy of any rules of an unregistered trade union to any person on the pretence that such rules are the rules of a registered trade union.

Dissolution of trade union

(Sec.27)
O

When a registered trade union is dissolved, notice for the dissolution signed by seven members and by the Secretary of the trade union shall, within fourteen days of the dissolution, be sent to the Registrar and shall be registered by him if he is satisfied that the dissolution has been effected in accordance with the rules of the trade union, and the dissolution shall have effect from the date of such registration. O However, the Trade Unions Act 1926 has been amended from time to time and the most important being the Trade Unions (Amendment) Act, 2001. O This Act has been enacted in order to bring more transparency and to provide greater support to trade unionism in India.

Criticism of trade union

O

O O

Lack of education: It makes the workers narrow-minded, and prevents them from taking long-term views. Thus, anything, which does not result in an immediate reward, becomes unattractive to them. This attitude is responsible for many strikes and lock-outs in industrial concerns. Trade unions may not welcome rationalisation and improved methods of production for the fear that some of the workers will be put out of work. Therefore, they resort to go slow policy that retards industrial progress. When labour unions strike because of illogical grounds, incalculable losses occur to producers, community and the nation. These are harmful to the workers also. They suffer because of the loss of wages. They create artificial scarcity of labour by demanding that only union personnel should be employed. By undue insistence on the payment of standard rates of wages, they have only levelled down the earnings of the efficient workers.

Problems & Weaknesses of Trade Unions

O

O O O

Uneven Growth. The trade unionism in India is characterised by uneven growth, both industry-wise and area-wise. Trade unions are popular in big industries and the degree of unionisation varies widely from industry to industry. Besides, trade union activities are concentrated in a few states and in bigger industrial centers mainly due to concentration of industries in those places. Indifferent attitude of the workers. Limited Membership. The number of trade unions in India has increased considerably. But this has been followed by the declining membership per union. Multiplicity of Unions. There exist several trade unions in the same establishment. The multiplicity of unions is the result of outside leadership and labour laws. Therefore, small sections of workers are encouraged to form separate Unions. There is no restriction on the number of unions to be registered in one establishment. Outside Leadership: These outsiders are politicians, intellectuals and professionals having no experience of work in industry. Outsiders continue to dominate the trade unions to advance their personal interests. Financial problems.

Case Law
O

O O O

The court will not interfere or prevent with the legitimate right of labour to agitate and go on strike, as long as they donot indulge in any illegal acts. (a)Rama Vilas Services V/s Simpson Company Union 1979; (b)Kamgar Sabha V/s Hindustan Ciba 1995. Any concerned movement by workers to achieve their objectives is permissible even inside the industrial establishment within working hours, as long as it is not unlawful or violent. Ahmedabad Textile Research assn. V/s Attra Employers Union 1995. The court doesnot allow the union or any of its office bearers to commit deliberate trespass. Dalmia Cement V/s Narain Das 1939. Trade union activities outside the bank or any establishment will not restrained by the court. Union cannot block the passage of men and material of the company. Simpson Union V/s amco Batteries, 1992.

Thank you!!