27 Industrial Relations

Rajeev Jain

Learning Outcomes:

The main objectives of industrial relations are:

• To develop and maintain harmonious relations between management and labour so essential for higher productivity of labour and industrial progress in the country.
• To safeguard the interests of labour as well as management by securing the highest level of mutual understanding and goodwill between all sections in industry.
• To establish and maintain industrial democracy based on the participation of labour in the management and gains of industry, so that the personality of every individual is fully recognized and developed.
• To avoid all forms of industrial conflict so as to ensure industrial peace by providing better working and living standard of workers.
• To rise productivity in an era of full employment by reducing the tendency of higher labour turnover and absenteeism.
• To bring about government control over such industrial units which are running at loses for protecting employment or where production needs to be regulated in public interest.
• To ensure a healthy and balanced social order through recognition of human rights in industry and adaption of complex social relationships to the advancement of technology.

27.1. Introduction:

Industrial relation (IR) has traditionally been a fire – fighting function in our country. The IR man comes into full play only after crisis erupts. The relationship between the employer and the employee is usually referred to as industrial relations. The labour – management relationship is a highly sensitive and complex aspect influenced by a variety of factors. The nature of the industrial relationship in an organisation is determined by factors such as the organisational culture, the attitude of the management, employees and unions, the conditions of employment, the existence of a grievance handling system and dispute settlement procedures, and the efficacy of rules and regulations. As a separate field of study, it is basically concerned with the systematic study of the various aspect of the labour management relationship. An industrial relationship arises out of the continuous interaction between the employers and the unions, which represent the employees. Thus the chief actor in industrial relations are the employers and the unions and their main relationship is through collective bargaining. Compensation- related issues, workload problems, retrenchment, layoffs and similar issues can determine the degree of cordiality in the industrial relationship collectively and individually.

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27.2. Meaning & Definition:

Industrial relations mean the relationship between employers and employees in industrial organisations. According to Dale Yoder, the term industrial relations refers to the whole field of relationship among people, human relationships that exist because of the necessary collaboration of men and women in employment process of modern industry.

In the broad sense, the term industrial relations also includes the relations between the various unions between the state and the unions as well as those between the employers and the government. Relations of all these associated in industry may be called industrial relations. The subject, therefore includes individual relations and joint consultation between employers and workers at the place of work, collective relations between employers and their organisations and trade unions and the part played by the state in regulating these relations. Industrial relations involve the study of how people get on together at their work, what difficulties arise between them, how relations among them are regulated and what organisations are set upto protect different interests.

According to ILO, industrial relations comprise relationship between the state on the one hand & the employers & employees organisation on the other hand & the relationship among the occupational organisations themselves. The ILO uses the term to denote such matters as freedom of association & the protection of the right to organise, the right to collective bargaining, collective agreements, conciliation & arbitration & the occupational organisations at various levels of economy.

According to Micheal Armstrong, “Industrial relations is concerned with the systems, rules & procedures, used by unions & employers to determine the reward for effort & other conditions of employment to protect the interest of the employed & their employers & to regulate the ways in which employers treat their employers.”

According to Ordway Tead & Henry.C. Metcalf, “Industrial relation is defined as the composite result of the attitudes & approaches of the employers & employees toward each other with regard to planning, supervision, direction & coordination of the activities of an organisation with a minimum of human efforts & frictions with an animating spirit of cooperation & with proper regard for the genuine well being of all members of the organisation.”

According to C. Von Otter, “The Study of labour management relations (LMR) refers to the rules & policies which govern & organize employment, how these are established & implemented & how they affect the needs & interest of employees & employers.”

The foregoing definitions reveals the following points about industrial relations

1.  Industrial relations are the outcome of the employment relationship in industry. These relations cannot exist without the two parties – employer & employees.

2.  Industrial relations include both individual relations as well as collective relations. Individual relations imply relations between employer & employees. Collective relations mean relations between employer’s associations & trade unions as well as the role of the state is regulating these relations.

3.   The concept of industrial relations is complex & multi dimensional. The concept is not limited to relations between trade unions & employer but also extends to the general web of relationship between employers, employees & the government.

4.  Industrial relations is a dynamic & developing concept. It undergoes change with changing structure & environment of industry.

5.    Strictly speaking a distinction can be made between human resource management & industrial relations. Human resource management deals mainly with executive policies & activities regarding the human resource aspects of the enterprise while industrial relations is mainly concerned with employers-employees relationship.

6 .Industrial relations do not function in a vaccum. These are rather the composite result of the attitude & approaches of employers & employees towards each other. Industrial relations are an integral part of social relations.

7.  Several parties are involved, in the industrial relations system. The main parties are employees & their associations, employees & their unions & the government. These three groups interact within the economic & social environment to shape the industrial relations system.

8.  The main purpose of industrial relations is to maintain harmonioies relationship between management & labour. The focus in these relationships is on accomodation. These parties involved develop skills & methods of adjusting to or cooperating with each other. They also attempt to solve their problems through collective bargaining.

9.   The Central & state government evolve, influence & regulate industrial relations through laws, rules, agreements, awards of courts, executive & financial machinery. The government has played an increasing role in industrial relation in part by becoming the biggest employer & partly by regulating working conditions in the private sector.

10.    The scope of industrial relations is quite wide. The main issues involved here are:

(a)  Grievances & their redressal

(b)  Worker’s participation in management

(c)  Ethical code & discipline

(d)  Collective bargaining

(e) Standing order

(f) Machinery for the settlement of industrial disputes.

27.3. Parties involved in Industrial Relations:

The major parties involved in industrial relations are employees, employee representatives, employers, association of employers, government & court & tribunal (as shown in fig 27.1)

Fig 27.1. Parties to IR

27.3.1. Employees:

Employees are the main party of industrial relation as there is a huge majority of employees working in organised & un-organised sector in our country. Therefore, it is useful to make certain circumstances:

27.3.1.1. Commitment to Industry:

Labour is committed to industrial setting, thus contribution to stable workforce as most of the employees belong to villages but due to work they are force to stay in city with his spouse & children, which make the job stability more prior, if industry want to maintain there relations.

27.3.1.2. Protective legislation:

From time to time, the government has enacted a variety of labour acts. Perhaps, ours is the only country in the world which has so many acts to protect worker’s interest. Thanks to the enormous protective legislation, wages, benefits & working conditions, safety & health of workers have improved considerably.

27.3.1.3. Status of the workers:

The economic & social status of today’s workers is vastly improved. Industrial employment is no longer the undesirable alternative left for those driven out from villages. Improved skills contents of the jobs & increased emoluments have made industrial employment the first attraction among young job aspirants.

27.3.1.4. Employment P attern:

Another feature noticed in the industrial labour is the change that has come about in the employment pattern owing to change in industrial activity, which has tremendously expanded & diversified, & has undergone a technical transformation. In the early days, unskilled work predominated in industrial employment, so long as traditional industries like textiles & mining were in the forefront.

27.3.2. Trade Union:

Unions have a crucial role to play in industrial relations. Unions have broad objectives which are:

1.   To reduce the bargaining advantage of the individual worker vis-à-vis the individual employers, by substituting joint or collective actions for individual action

2.   To secure improved terms & conditions of employment for their members & the maximum degree of security to enjoy these terms & conditions.

3.  To obtain improved status for the worker in his or her work, and

4.To increase the extent to which unions can exercise democratic control over decisions that affect their interests by power sharing at the national, corporate & plant levels

The union power is exerted primarily at two levels- at the industry level, to establish joint regulations at on basic wages & hours with an employer’s association or its equivalent; & at the plant level where the organisation exercise joint control over some aspects of the organisation of the work & terms & conditions of employment.

27.3.3. Employers:

Employers, too are directly involved in any dispute between them & the employees. Employers are endowed with certain inalienable right vis-à-vis labour. The management has the right to hire & fire any worker, notwithstanding union restrictions. It is no just firing a worker here or there, but the management’s ability to control the economic destiny of the workers that matters. The management has the right to relocate, close, merge, takeover or sell a particular plant, these actions affect worker’s interests. The management has another powerful weapon i.e, introducing or threatening to the technological change. Technological change can displace labour or annihilate skills.

In general, managers tend to see employee relations in term of the following activities:

1.  Creating & maintaining employee motivation

2.  Obtaining commitment from the work force.

3.  Establishing mutually beneficial channels of communication throughout the organisation

4.  Achieving high levels of efficiency

5.  Negotiating terms & conditions of employment with employee representation

6.  Sharing decision making with employees.

7.  Engaging in a power structure with trade unions.

27.3.4. Employer’s Association:

Employers associations operate at local, industry & all India levels. The confederation of the Indian Industries (CII) is a powerful body at the national level which is doing an admirable job in protecting & promoting the legitimate interests of the owners of industries.

The major objectives of employer’s association include:

1.  Representing employers in collective bargaining

2.  Developing machinery for avoidance of disputes.

3.  Providing information on employee relation & to give advice.

4.  Representing members on national issues.

27.3.5. Role of Government:

In a sense, government intervention in industrial relation is as old as the industry itself. However, till the 19th century, governments everywhere followed the Laissez faire policy – they left IR to the managers & workers who were required to solve the problems themselves. Towards the end of the of the 19th century, the attitude of the government changed, & intervention became a reality. The state, as of today, regulates the relationship between the management & the labour & seeks to protect the interests of the both the groups.

27.3.6. Judiciary & Employee Relations:

The powers of the judiciary are of dual type:

1. The authority of the courts to settle legal disputes

2 .Judicial review- the authority of the courts to rule on the constitutionality of a legislation

It is the power of the judiciary to settle legal disputes, reffered to them, that affect IR considerably. The judicial pronouncements will have a far reaching impact because (i) judicial errors do occur, through infrequent, (ii) possibility of wrong assessment of penalty, “Judges notoriously vary in the security of punishment inflicted. (iii) judges are known for pronouncing conflicting verdicts on the same or similar disputes, and (iv) confusion in terms.

27.4. Approaches to study of Industrial Relations:

Since the employers & the employees have conflicting interests over the organisational resources, industrial relations remain a complex & sensitive issue. On the one hand, the employers in business aim at making more profits & faster growth by reducing cost. On the other hand, the employees seek to enhance their income & social status by demanding more compensation from the employers, and this will obviously push up the cost of production. The interests of the employers & those of the employees often remain irreconcilable & their stand remains mutually antagonistic. These approaches are: (i) the unitary approach; (ii) the pluralist approach; (iii) the system approach; (iv) the social action approach; (v) the Marxist approach; (vi) the Gandhian approach; (vii) the human relations approach; (viii) the Giri approach; (ix) the industrial sociology approach and (x) the Oxford school approach.

Fig. 27.2. Approaches of Industrial Relations

27.4.1. The Unitary Approach:

This approach characterized by a form of administration in which power is vested with a single authority. In the case of the unitary approach to industrial relations, the authority rests solely with the management with no right to anyone to challenge its decision. According to the proponents of this approach, its basic assumption is that the common values & objectives unite & bind both the management & the workers. The use of power in this approach is only for the common good & interest. The management, this approach believes, must deal strongly with the perceived challenges born out of the irrational beliefs, the short term preoccupations & the narrow perspectives that develop from the ignorance of the challengers to its authority & to the overall system.

27.4.2. The Pluralist Approach:

Unlike the unitary approach, the pluralist approach believes in basic ground rules, negotiated settlements &   mutual compromises for solving the industrial conflicts. The basic assumption of this approach is that the disagreements between the parties to the industrial relations on important issues are not unbridgeable by compromises & the collaborations can continue at all stages. In the pluralist approach, the power is not vested with anyone group; rather a balance of power is maintained between the parties to the industrial relations.

27.4.3. The System Approach:

This approach was developed by J.P. Dunlop of Howard University in 1958. According to this approach, individual are part of an ongoing but independent social system. The behaviour, actions & role of the individuals are shaped by the cultures of the society. The three elements of the system approach are input, process & output. Society provides the cue (signal) to the individuals about how one should act in a situation. The institutions, the value system & other characteristics of the society influence the process & determine the outcome or response of the individuals.

27.4.4. The Social Action Approach:

It is a variant of the system approach. In the system approach, society plays a dominant role, while the actors such as employers, employees & their representatives keep a low profile & play a passive role in the process. On the contrary, the social action approach assigns an active role to the actor s of the industrial relations. The actor’s understanding of the work situation become more important than the social factors & their independent views gain a greater weightage in deciding their behaviour towards industrial relations.

27.4.5. The Marxist Approach:

According to this approach, industrial conflicts are the central reality of industrial relations, but open conflicts are uncommon. The Marxist approach views industrial disputes as a class struggle & industrial relations as a politicized concept & an element of the class struggle. As per the Marxist approach, the understanding of industrial relations requires an understanding of the capitalized society, the social relation of production & the mechanism of capital accumulation.

27.4.6. The Gandhian Approach:

The core of the gandhian approach in industrial relations is the utility of non-violence as a means of conflicts resolution in organisations. The basic elements of this approach are truth, non-violence, the voluntary arbitration of disputes & want-lessness. According to Gandhi, the growth of civilization does not mean a multiplication of wants, rather, it means a deliberate & self imposed attempt to reduce such wants. He blamed the system, rather than individuals, for several evils for society.

27.4.7. The Human Relations Approach:

According to this approach, an organisation is nothing but a set of human relations & these human relations are central to how an organisations functions. As per this approach, organisations are made up of people & the success of the management lies in its dealings with these people & their relationship to one another. The goals of the human relation approach are: (i) getting people to work; (ii) cooperating through mutuality of interests & (iii) deriving satisfaction from the achieved relationship.

27.4.8. Giri Approach:

Former President of India V.V.Giri’s deep concern for the well being of the working class made him write two popular books on labour issues entitled Industrial Relations & Labour problems in the Indian Industry. According to him, in the tree of socialism, the root comprises human beings. Giri observed that, “it is an essential condition to maintain mutual trust & confidence between the employer & employee to obtain the goal of rapid economic development & social justice.”

27.4.9. Industrial Sociology Approach:

The aim of the industrial sociology approach is to investigate the underlying trends & patterns in the cause & effect of industrial disputes both intended & unintended. Unlike the most other approaches which focus only on the resolution of conflict as a means of achieving industrial relations, the industrial sociology approach focuses on the prevention of industrial conflict by tracing the cause of the disputes & then avoiding it.

27.4.10. Oxford School Approach:

According to this approach , the conflict between the interests of employers & employees is inherent, but this interest can be adjusted in order that a common way, which can satisfy both the parties, can be found out, however difficult it may be. Productivity bargaining is a classic example of this approach. According to this approach , it is highly essential for the parties to the industrial relations to get the facts right & avoid institutional & other biases. The Oxford school approach can be expressed through the following equations

r = f(b) or f(c)

where r = rules governing industrial relations; b means collective bargaining & c refers to conflict resolution.

27.5. Factors influencing Industrial Relations:

27.5.1. Trade Union Density:

When the unions are phenomenally strong in an industry, the power balance would be in favour of the employees & the unions. In such a situation, the term of industrial relations would be decided by the unions.

27.5.2. Frequency of strike activity:

When the organisation or industry reports a high number of strikes within a specific period, the industrial relation would come under increasing strain. Depending upon the outcome of the strikes, the power equation would change.

27.5.3. Political- Economic Institution:

The role of politico- economic institution is critical in achieving industrial peace & harmony. When the political institutions, especially the ruling combine, overtly favour the employees & the trade unions, the power equation would tilt in favour of the union.

27.5.4. Cultural Diversity:

When there is cultural diversity among the workforce, it may favour the employers to have divisions among the employees along cultural lines. The educated & enlightened employees may make independent decisions, which may differ with the general stand of the unions.

27.5.5. Demographic structure:

The presence of heterogeneous groups based on age, gender, income & other relevant bases can also influence the power balance between employers & employees.

27.5.6. Pattern of Behaviour:

When the employers espouse authoritarianism in behaviour & style of management, the employees may predominantly prefer unions & aggressive postures, if possible. In contrast, the employees side with the employers. When the latter adopt a consultative paternal approach.

27.6. Essential of Effective Industrial Relations:

27.6.1. Leadership Commitment:

Effective industrial relations require strong commitment & support from the management for the maintenance of harmonious industrial relations. The management must develop a kind of culture & philosophy which encourages changes management through cooperation & consultation at all levels of the organisation.

27.6.2. Appropriate Vision, Mission & Business Strategy:

The thinking of an organisation & its priority for good industrial relations must be made known to all its employees. The management must make suitable changes in its vision & mission statements so that clearly & pursue them keenly to the end that the industrial relations goals are achieved effectively.

27.6.3. Creative HR Policies:

The HR policies of an organisation have a profound influence on shaping its industrial relations. In fact, the employees from their perception about the industrial relations on the basis of the HR philosophy & policies of the organisation.

27.6.4. Open Communication:

An organisation must develop a two way communication channel to remain connected with its employees. An open communication system enables the management not only to keep the employees informed about the proposed changes but also to get constant feedback from them about its policies & actions.

27.6.5. Institutionalizing the Relationship:

In the long run, the management must develop a system for the improving the industrial relations on a continous basis. Intermittent processes like collective bargaining alone are not sufficient to develop the desired level of industrial relationship. The management must take measures for promoting the industrial relations at all levels of the organisation.

27.6.6. Benchmarking Industrial Relations:

Organizations must make every effort to fix standards or benchmarks for industrial relations so that the progress in industrial relations is properly monitored. Certainly, industrial conflicts like strikes, lockouts &   other forms of industrial disturbances are inversely related to industrial peace & harmony & such, can become the criteria for measuring industrial relations.

27.7. Causes of Poor Industrial Relations:

27.7.1. Economic Causes:-

Poor wages & poor working conditions are the main reason for unhealthy relations among managements &   labour. Unauthorised deduction from wages, lack of fringe benefits, absence of promotional opportunities; dissatisfaction with job evaluation & performance appraisal methods, faulty incentive schemes are other economic causes.

27.7.2. Organisational Causes:

Faulty communication system, dilution of supervision & command, non-recognition of trade unions, unfair practices, violation of collective agreements & standing orders & labour laws are the organisational causes of poor relations industry.

27.7.3. Social Causes:-

Uninteresting nature of work is the main social cause. Factory system & specialization have made worker a subordinate to the machine. Workers has lost sense of pride & satisfaction.

27.7.4. Psychological causes:-

Lack of job security, poor organisational culture, non-recognition of merit & performance, authoritative administration & poor interpersonal relations are the psychological reason for unsatisfactory employer-employee relations

27.7.5. Political Causes:

Political nature of trade unions, multiple unions & interunion rivalry weaken trade union movement. In the absence of strong & responsible trade unions, collective bargaining becomes ineffective. The union’s status is reduced to a mere strike committee.

27.8. Measures for improving Industrial Relations:

27.8.1. Sound Human Resource Policies:

Policies & procedures concerning the compensation, transfer, promotion etc. of employees should be fair & transparent. All policies &  rules relating to industrial relations should be clear to everyday in the enterprise & to the union leaders.

27.8.2. Constructive Attitudes:

Both management & trade unions should adopt positive attitudes towards each other. Management must recognise union as the spokesmen of the worker’s grievance & as custodians of their interest.

27.8.3. Collective Bargaining:

Employer’s organisation as well as trade unions should be able & willing to deal with mutual problems freely & responsibility.

27.8.4. Participative Management:

Employers should associate workers & unions in the formulation & implementation of human resources policies & practice.

27.8.5. Responsible Union:

Unions should adopt a responsible rather than political approach to industrial relations. Unions should accept private ownership & operation of industry.

27.8.6. Employee Welfare:-

Employers should recognise the need for the welfare of workers. They must ensure reasonable wages, satisfactory working condition, opportunities for training & development & other necessary facilities for labour.

27.8.7. Grievance Procedure:

A well established & properly administered system for the timely & satisfactory redressal of employee’s grievances can be very helpful of workers.

Summary:

Industrial relations refer to collective relationship between the parties involved directly in industry. They are complex and multidimensional concept conditioned by the economic, social and political environment in a country. The basic objective of industrial relations is to develop and maintain mutual understanding and cooperation between the employer and worker.