Meaning & Concept of Industrial Relations. Collective Bargaining - Meaning, Scope and Objectives; Collective Bargaining – Issues and Strategies; Negotiations Skills and Strategies

Meaning & Concept of Industrial Relations. Collective Bargaining - Meaning, Scope and Objectives; Collective Bargaining – Issues and Strategies; Negotiations Skills and Strategies 

Discuss
a.) Industrial relations (4)
b.) Industrial Disputes (4)
Answer:
a.) Industrial Relations
The concept of Industrial relations evolved in the late 19th century because of the industrial
revolutions. It is a field of study which analyzes the relationship among the management and
the employees of an organization at the workplace and also provides a mechanism to settle
down the various industrial disputes.
It is a combination of two terms: Industry & Relations
‘Industry’ can be viewed as an economic activity (i.e., manufacturing, producing or
processing of goods or services) which is performed by a group of individuals and ‘Relations’
here refers to the connection and communication which pertains between the employer and
the employees within a workplace.
Various scholars have defined Industrial Relations in varied ways:
According to Dale Yoder’, IR is a designation of a whole field of relationship that exists
because of the necessary collaboration of men and women in the employment processes of
Industry”.
Armstrong has defined IR as “IR is concerned with the systems and procedures used by
unions and employers to determine the reward for effort and other conditions of employment,
to protect the interests of the employed and their employers and to regulate the ways in which
employers treat their employees
Encyclopaedia Britannica defined IR more elaborately as “The concept of industrial
relations has been extended to denote the relations of the state with employers, workers, and
other organisations. The subject, therefore, includes individual relations and joint
consultation between employers and workers at their places of work, collective relations
between employers and trade unions; and the part played by the State in regulating these
relations”.
Factors Affecting Industrial Relations 
Industrial relations deal with human behaviour and management of personnel in an
organizational setup. The various factors that influence the relationship between the
administration and the employees in an organization are
1. Individual Behavior
Every employee behaves differently in different situations influenced by their varied
perceptions, background, knowledge, skills, experience and achievements. This attitude
impacts the work environment of the organisation.
2. Organisational Behaviour
Every organisation has a hierarchical structure that creates a formal relationship between
various employees at various hierarchical levels. The delegation and execution of
powers by superior influences the relations between managers and employees.
3. Psychological Factors
The positive or negative attitude of the employer towards employee and vice versa, their
attitude towards the work assigned and work expected impacts their relation.
4. Leadership Style
The leadership style and traits of every manager is different. Through his varied formal
and informal ways of motivating and instructing his team he impacts teh organisational
Industrial Relations.
5. Economic and Technical Environment
The economic and technological changes lead to restructuring of the jobs, wages,
conditions, hours of work etc. of the employees which further leads to resistance from
them. This behaviour, attitude, adaptability of the people towards the changes lead to
differences in the organisation.
6. Legal and Political Environment
The legal framework and Political system contributes to the policy formulation, roles and
responsibilities, authority delegation , framing rules and rights and therefore influences
the industrial relations in an organisation.
The objectives of Industrial Relations are designed to:
1. Safeguarding the interests of the employees by establishing and fostering sound
relationship between workers and management.
2. Avoid industrial conflicts and strikes by developing mutuality among the interests of
concerned parties. 
3. Enhance economic status the of workers by keeping strikes, lockouts and gheraos at bay.
4. Provide an opportunity to the workers to participate in management and decision making
process.
5. Raise productivity in the organisation to curb the employee turnover and absenteeism.
6. Avoid unnecessary interference of the government, as far as possible and practicable, in
the matters of relationship between workers and management.
7. Establish and nurse industrial democracy based on labour partnership in the sharing of
profits and of managerial decisions.
8. Socialise industrial activity by involving the government participation as an employer.
b.) Industrial Dispute:
An industrial dispute is referred to as friction or disagreement between two or more parties
involved, due to the difference in their perceptions, opinions, mindsets, attitudes and values.
In an organization, disputes can be between Employer and employee; Employee and
employee or; Employer and employer.
On a massive level, conflicts can even arise between the government and the public.
Industrial disputes are sometimes observed as a result of poor industrial relations in an
organisation.
Different Types of Disputes are:
1. Interest Disputes
The conflicts concerning the economic or non-economic interests of the employees, such as
increasing the remuneration, working conditions, job security and other benefits are called
interest disputes.
2. Recognition Disputes
The trade unions often enter into a dispute with the management during negotiation or
collective bargaining for the benefit of its member employees.
Sometimes, for these negotiations, the management denies identifying the trade unions. Even
when there are many trade unions in an organization, each one of them struggles to get
recognized by the management.
3. Grievance Disputes or Rights Disputes
The conflicts concerning the employee’s rights and legal issues with the management are
termed as grievance disputes. It includes promotions, work duration, leaves allowed, over
time, fringe benefits, safety and security.
4. Unfair Labour Practices Disputes
The disputes over the unethical treatment of the management towards the labour such as
discriminating them for holding membership of trade union, restricting communication,
employing new workers during strikes and denial to bargain are called unfair labour practices
disputes.
Causes of Industrial disputes
1. Economic Causes
Industrial disputes can take place between the management and the labour due to the different
aims of jobs and people. Where the ultimate aim of the labour is to earn their livings and
meet their economic ends the aim of the business is to generate profits. Therefore, on the nonfulfilment of these needs, industrial disputes can take place between the management and the
labour.
It includes demanding a higher wage, increasing the profits, bonus and allowances, replacing
machinery, improving working conditions, duration and other necessary facilities.
2. Managerial Causes
Industrial Disputes can arise from Lack of administrative support and attention towards
labour. Various managerial causes of industrial disputes are:
• Retrenchment or layoff of the workers without any reason;
• The inefficiency of the management to initiate leadership in the organization;
• Poorly built and dissatisfying recruitment policies and practices;
• The employer does not comply with the agreement and codes such as code of
discipline and collective bargaining;
• The management does not acknowledge the trade unions as a representative of the
union members, i.e., the workmen.
3. Government Machinery
At times, the government lacks a suitable strategy to address industrial disputes. Some of the
drawbacks of the government machinery which lead to industrial conflicts are as follows:
• The need for growth and development is not considered seriously
• Difficulties in dealing with industrial culture and climate challenges
• Low level of trust of the employers and the employees, over the government’s
settlement machinery.
4. Voluntary Arbitration
The word arbitration refers to the settlement of any dispute mutually with the help of an
arbitrator.
Voluntary arbitration is a third party intervention in the dispute settlement process. The
disadvantage of this system is its decision can be biased or unacceptable by either of the
parties, which can result in further conflicts.
5. Wage Boards
Though the Indian government has set up wage boards for determining the suitable wages of
the workmen or labourers, but if the workmen are dissatisfied with their remuneration, it
leads to a condition of an industrial dispute.
6. Joint Management Councils (JMC)
The government created Joint Management Councils, which consist of equal representatives
of both the parties to deal with the worker’s problems, but the idea failed due to lack of
efficiency and progress.
7. Other Causes
The various other causes of industrial disputes are stated below:
• Weak and multiple trade unions result in more conflicts
• Influence of the political party in power, supporting a particular trade union leads to
conflicts
• The adverse effect of the relationship with the central and state governments, unstable
political conditions and everyday responsibilities results in industrial disputes
• Lack of collective bargaining, or prohibition trade unions
• Corruption, apparent consumption, role conflicts, etc.
Consequences of the Strikes
1. Strikes
It is a way through which a group of workmen exercise pressure on the management by
stopping the work and protesting against the employers to get their demands fulfilled.
Following are the different types of strikes:
Primary Strikes: The strikes which are directly projected against the employers are called as
primary strikes. Some of the most common primary strikes are as follows:
(i) Gherao: Gherao refers to physically encircling the managers by the workmen to
create a restricted area where no one can move in or out. The targeted
managers are humiliated through; abuses also they are restricted move in or
out.
(ii) Picketing: Picketing is the process of putting up signboards, play cards and banners
by the workmen to display their protest or dispute in front of the public. To 
involve maximum workers in the strike, some union members are made to
stand at the factory gate to influence others too.
(iii)Boycott: As the name suggests, boycott refers to interrupting business operations. It
requests the other labourers to temporarily pull back their co-operation with
the management and contribute to the strike.
(iv)Stay Away Strike: In a stay-away strike, the workmen organize a protest in the form
of demonstrations, marches, rallies, apart from the workplace.
(v) Pen Down Strike: It is also known as the sit-down strike or tools down strike.
Though the workmen come to the workplace daily and also avails the work
facilities, they sit idle and stop working.
(vi)Token Strike: A token strike is a short form of protest where the workmen stop their
work for a definite period. It is usually for as short as 24 hours, to hamper a
day’s production or so and get their demands fulfilled by the management.
(vii) Lightning Strike: The lightning strike is that form of strikes where the
workmen call off the work immediately without giving any prior information
or warning to the management. It is also termed as a catcall strike.
(viii) Go Slow Strike: This is another harmful way of protesting against the
management where the workmen secretly plan to decrease their work speed so
that the production is hampered. However, in front of the management, they
pretend to be highly committed towards their job.
(ix)Work to Rule: In this type of strike, the employees strictly follow their job rules or
contract and stops performing any additional task, other than what all are
mentioned in their agreement.
(x) Hunger Strike: One of the most common forms of a strike is the hunger strike. The
workmen go on fasting for an indefinite period and sit nearby the workplace or
the employer’s house to project their demands.
Secondary Strikes: The other name for the secondary strike is the sympathy strike. In this,
the force is applied against the third person having sound trade relations with the organization
to indirectly incur a loss to the employer and the business. The third person does not have any
other role to play in such a strike.
Other Strikes: There are undoubtedly other forms of strike too, which takes place on a vast
level involving and affecting a large number of people. These are as follows:
(i) General Strike: The strikes which are conducted on a mass level, i.e., in the whole
country or state or city instead of just a single organization for fulfilment of a demand
unanimously like job permanency or an increase in pay, etc.
(ii) Political Strike: Any law or act proposed by the government for making changes to
the working terms or conditions when unaccepted by the workers is protested through
political strike on a massive level.
(iii) Particular Strike: The protest against a specific issue or person within a city, state or
country and take up a colossal form is termed as a particular strike.
(iv) Bandhs: Bandh is adopted in countries like Nepal and India where a specific
community or a political party calls for a general strike across the city or state or
country. It is a form of civil disobedience and sometimes become violent, even
involving stone attacks or arson attacks at times. 
Lockouts
This form of an industrial dispute is raised by the employers to impose specific terms and
conditions on the workers. It is very different from layoff, retrenchment, termination or
prohibition of employees.
In lockouts, the employer temporarily closes down the workplace or stops the work or takes
action like suspending the workers to force them to follow the new terms and conditions.
What are the methods used to sort industrial disputes?
Answer: Methods of Settlement of Disputes
A dispute, therefore, needs to be settled as early as possible. Various methods are available
for resolving disputes like:
1: Collective bargaining
2: Code of discipline
3: Grievance procedure
4: Arbitration
5: Conciliation
6: Adjudication
7: Consultative machinery
 Elaborate collective bargaining and its methodology.
Answer:
 Collective Bargaining is a process in which the representatives of a labour
organization & the representatives of business organization meet and attempt to
negotiate a contract or agreement, which specifies the nature of employee-employer
union relationship”.
 – FLIPPO
 Process involving discussions and negotiations
 ‘collective’ – group
 'bargaining' – proposals and counter proposals
 to reconcile their conflicting interests 
 is a flexible approach
Collective Bargaining Process
Collective Bargaining Agreement
 Written document regarding working conditions and terms of employment
 Legally, a CBA binds only the parties to it.
 In India, there are three types of agreements, namely
 voluntary agreements,
 settlements, and
 Consent awards.
 procedural agreements or substantive agreements
Contents of Collective Bargaining Agreement
 The date of commencement of the agreement
 Its duration
 A definition of terms
 The procedure for settling disputes regarding interpretation, as well as other disputes.
 The consequences in the event of breaches of the agreement 
 As regards wages, exactly how conversion of employees' wages to the new scales is to
be effected.
Levels of solving Collective bargaining