Employee Legislation in India: History, Characters, and Importance, Study notes of Business Administration

Download Employee Legislation in India: History, Characters, and Importance and more Study notes Business Administration in PDF only on Docsity! EMPLOYEE LEGISLATION Industrialisation has brought with it, huge employment opportunities, mass production, distribution of goods and commodities but at the same time carried with it certain disadvantages to workmen as loss of freedom, unhygienic working conditions, no freedom of contract, the dynamics of market and self interest. Peter Drucker calls it "The age of discontinuity, turbulent environment and technocratic age". Technology has ushered in the following, (i) elimination of physical labour, (ii) mass production at low cost (iii) too much of control mechanisms, (iv) reduction in workers ability (v) heavy monitoring , maintaining, repairing, adjusting (vi) sense of alienation among workmen (vii) inter dependence and (viii) strict discipline. Industry demands interaction of people. Industrial relations involves inaction and violent action, conflict and co- operation. Labour management is based on labour policy, laws, rules, regulations, agreements, awards, social sciences, behaviour pattern, sociology, psychology and human approach. Industrial relation is the process by which working people and their organisation interact at the place of work to establish terms and conditions of work. Professor Lester "when people sell their services and spend their lives in the premises of the purchaser of the services, a varying amount of dissatisfaction, discontent, industrial unrest likely to occur. Hence the need for employee legislations. The State has enacted many employee legislations to control the industries as to safeguard the interest of employees as well to cater to their welfare and security needs. The Employee Legislation, The Labour Legislation or The Industrial Legislation or The Human Resources Legislation, whatever name it may be called refers to the one and the same concept that covers a number of legislations passed by the Parliament to procure for the employees, higher wages, healthy working condition, opportunity to advance, satisfaction at work, avenues for raising industrial dispute and protection against loss of wages, over work and arbitrary treatment. This concept could easily be comprehended when we undertake the study of all the characters who play the roles in an industrial organisation. The main characters are Employer, Employee, the Trade Union and the Government. EMPLOYEE : Indian Labour generally speaking are exploited to the core. Most of them have migrated from rural areas to the urban areas and they are classified as illiterates, arrogant, undisciplined untrained, unskilled and uncontrollable. This assessment is made on the organised labour which constitutes merely 8 percent of the country's total labour force. The remaining work force falls under the category of unorganised sector who are not fully taken care of. The Indian Employee Legislations were oriented towards safeguarding the interest of employees and protecting them against exploitation. These Legislations are mostly Government controlled under the banner of Labour Commissioner, Labour Officer Conciliation, Inspectorate, Enforcement Officers The Trade Union Act 1926 was based on the British Trade Union Act. The definition of Trade Union as found in our act is a mere reproduction of the definition of the British Act. "Trade Union" means 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". This definition is defective in the sense that it has not eLabourated on the words any combination. The use of the words any combination has allowed outsiders of from trade union. In our country all the Trade Unions are formed by political parties. These political parties are loyal to their political bosses and carry certain ideologies that are outmoded and impractical. Socialism, Communism, can be preached but can never be practiced. These ideologies are stumbling blocks in the road to progress. The Trade Union Act has been amended as to ensure that Trade Union becomes an internal affair Earlier to amendment any seven persons can from a trade union, now at least 10 percent or one hundred of the workmen whichever is less are needed to form a union. The amended act also demands that one half of the office bearers should be insiders which should be slowly enhanced to 75 percent. The trade union leaders now are careerist who are little concerned with the interest of either the workmen or the employer. Trade Union is necessary but not in the current form but should be an internal affair managed by employees of the organisation and not abused by the political parties. However it is to be contended that Trade Unions are necessary to voice the concern and anguish of workmen. The above comments are purely academic and not intended to offend any person or political party. These comments are oriented towards the welfare of the working force. GOVERNMENT : What is the role of the government in the industrial theatre? In fact it is the Government that plays the major role in employee legislation. All employee legislations are state controlled and the courts of law are to give verdicts only. The state functions through its commissioners, conciliation officers, Inspectors, enforcement officers. Minimum wages are fixed by State Governments as per the cost of living index. Payment of wages is watched by the State. Payment of ESI fund and payment of EPF are regulated by Central Government through its Enforcement Officers. Industrial Dispute cannot go to the court of law directly. Any dispute has to be raised before Labour Officer Conciliation and only on failure of conciliation the government frames issues to be answered and refers it to the Labour court or Labour Tribunal. The Award (Judgment) passed by the Court of law gets the legal power only on its publication by the Government in the official Gazette. Any violation of the Award is reported to the Labour commissioner who initiates action against the defaulter. Prior intimation to the Government and permission from the Government has to obtained for effecting closure of an industry that engages more than 100 workmen. To sum up most of our labour legislations are either before our independence or immediately after independence. These laws are outmoded and it is high time the laws are re-enacted as to suit the changing climate. Historical Dimension of Labour in India The Evolution of industrial relations 1. Primitive stage 2. Agrarian Economy 3. Serfdom 4. Handicrafts 5. Cottage or Putting Out 6. Factory or Industrial Capitalisation stage.