INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS AND LABOUR LAWS

ASSIGNMENT 1

1. Explain Industrial Relation and its current scenario in India?

The term industrial relationship between management and Labor or among

Employees and their Organization that characterizes or grows out of Employment.

Industrial Relation -why/who/how

Why;

To carry out business /operations smoothly and effectively, Overall growth prosperity of the
organization &employees To maintain law and order and in large interest of society

WHO?

Responsibility of employer, employee and trade unions, responsibility of human resource

function and line managers/supervisors.

HOW? (Important principles)

Transparency/trust and respect/ fairness involvement/engagement

communication/dialogue/negotiation,

Parties Involved in Industrial relations:

1. Primary parties
2. Other parties

1. Primary parties:

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Those persons or associations which are directly associations with or influenced by the function
of industrial relations are as follows:

 Employees:
The worker who provides their services to the organization is an essential resource
and contributes to generating the desired output.

 Employers:
Employers are responsible for providing a favorable work environment for the
employees. They have many rights and powers likes laying off inefficient employees,
taking strategic decisions such as mergers, acquisition or shutdown of the organization
and adapting technological changes in the operations.

 Government:
Before the 19th century, the government didn’t use to intervene in the conflicts
between the employers and employee.

2. Other parties:
The parties (especially the internal and external bodies or associations) which impact the
industrial relations within an organization are as follows.

 Employer’s Association:
It is an authoritative body, formed to protect the interest of the industrial owners.

 Trade union:
When the workers unite together to form an association a representatives among
themselves, for the protection of their right and to raise their demands in front of the
management, it is named as a trade union.

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 Courts and tribunals:

The judiciary includes the courts’ to resolve the legitimate conflicts and the ‘judicial
review’ to administer the justice of the constitution.

 International labor organization:

On the international grounds, an association was formed under the name of
international labor organization in the year 1919 to set up international norms and
standards for dealings with industrial disputes and issues of the workers.

 Human resources functions:

The human’s resources department or team acts as a mediator between the
organization and its employees for dealings with the personnel issues and conflicts. It is
their responsibility to ensure the maintenance of harmonious industrial relations in the
company.

Scope of the Industrial relation:

1. Employer- Employee Relations:

The relationship that pertains between the employer or the owner and the employees
of the particular company is known as the employer-employee relationship.

2. Group Relations:
The interactions and communication between the workers belonging to different
work groups are studied under group relations.

3. Labor Relations:
In an organization, the relationship by the managers and the workers is termed as
labor relations. It includes their behavior thoughts, actions and perception against each
other.

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4. Public Relations:
It is also termed as community relations. The interaction and relationship of the
organization with the society or external bodies is termed as public relations.

Objectives of industrial Relations:

 Handling grievance:
Industrial relations aim to maintain cordial relationship between the management and
the employees by resolving the disputes and setting up a mechanism to address the
grievances of the both the parties.

 Mental Revolution:
It emphasizes on transforming the way of thinking of the management and the
workers.

 Employee’s Right protection:

Under industrial relations, various acts (like in India National labor Relations Act)
and associations were formed to safeguard the right and interests of the employees.

 Contract Interpretation:
The lack of a manager understands of the collective bargaining agreement may lead
to false decision making.

 Boosting morale:
The motivated workforce is the most efficient resources of the organization.
Therefore, industrial relations emphasizes on building employee’s confidence and
boosting their morale to perform better than before.

 Collective Bargaining:
The worker’s representative and the management of the organization put their
proposals in front of each other and negotiate over the same to reach to a mutual decision
which is written down in a collective bargaining agreement.

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Current scenario of Industrial relations

The current changing phases of industrial relations is different in the era of “knowledge worker”
from that of “who only think of a living” in the field of academicians, industrial relations
traditional positions is threatened on one side by the dominance of mainstream economics and
organizational behavior, and on the other by postmodernism.

Industrial Relational scenario in India:

Industrial relational scenario is constantly changing world wide and India has no exception.
However, the role of state, government and different institution has a major role in this regards
and make a huge difference to the subject of industrial relations. Today’s educated workforce
and worker, have a need to control his/her workspace, and is paranoid about obsolescence, thus
the jobs need to be challenging. And focus should de on innovation and upgrading their current
skill set. Economic development has brought in changes in the society.

1. Life expectancy is better from 59 in 1991 to 65 in 2011.

2. Growing urbanization – 30% stay in urban areas in 2011 as against 11% in 1901.

3. Literacy rate in the country is increased from 52 in 1991 to 74 in 2011.

4. There is substantial increase in people moving away from joint families to nuclear
families.

5. Besides nuclear families some are resorting to live-in relationship and same a sex
marriage.

6. Increase in number of women stepping out for work, and joining the workforce.