Unfair Labour Practices

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Unfair Labour Practices: 


Meaning

Unfair labour practices refer to actions taken by employers or trade unions that violate the rights of workers or employers, often with the intent to undermine the collective bargaining process or to create an unfair advantage.


The Legal Framework on Unfair Labour Practices: Industrial Disputes Act, 1947

The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, provides a legal framework for addressing industrial disputes, protecting workers' rights, and promoting fair labour practices. The Fifth Schedule of the Act enumerates unfair labour practices by both employers and workers.


Unfair Labour Practices by Employers

1. Interference with Workers' Rights to Unionise: Employers cannot interfere with, restrain, or coerce workers in their right to organise, form, join, or assist a trade union.

2. Dominating or Supporting a Trade Union: Employers cannot dominate, interfere with, or contribute support to any trade union.

3. Discrimination Based on Union Membership: Employers cannot discriminate against workmen based on their union membership or activities.

4. Unjust Dismissal: Unjust dismissal is one of the most severe forms of unfair labour practice by employers.

5. Abolishing Regular Work: Employers cannot abolish the work of a regular nature being done by workmen and assign it to contractors as a measure of breaking a strike.

6. Malafide Transfers: Transferring workers with malicious intent is an unfair labour practice.

7. Good Conduct Bonds: Insisting upon individual workmen who are on a legal strike to sign a good conduct bond as a precondition to allowing them to resume work is an unfair labour practice.


Unfair Labour Practices by Trade Unions and Workmen

1. Supporting Illegal Strikes: Trade unions are prohibited from advising, supporting, or instigating strikes that are deemed illegal under the Act.

2. Coercion in Union Membership: Trade unions must not coerce workers to join or refrain from joining a union.

3. Refusal to Bargain Collectively: Trade unions are obligated to bargain collectively in good faith.


Mechanisms for Addressing Unfair Labour Practices

1. Collective Bargaining: Collective bargaining is the process by which workers, through their trade unions, negotiate with employers on matters such as wages, working conditions, and other terms of employment.

2. Conciliation: Conciliation is an alternative dispute resolution mechanism where a neutral third party assists the disputing parties in reaching an amicable settlement.

3. Voluntary Arbitration: Voluntary arbitration is another alternative dispute resolution mechanism where the parties in dispute agree to submit their conflict to an arbitrator, whose decision is binding.

4. Adjudication: Adjudication involves referring disputes to statutory bodies such as Labour Courts, Industrial Tribunals, or National Tribunals for adjudication.


State Legislation on Unfair Labour Practices

Several states in India have enacted their own legislation to address unfair labour practices and manage industrial relations, such as the Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946, and the Maharashtra Recognition of Trade Unions and Prevention of Unfair Labour Practices Act, 1971.


Landmark Judgments on Unfair Labour Practices


Several landmark judgments have shaped the interpretation and enforcement of laws related to unfair labour practices in India, including S.G. Chemical and Dyes Trading Employees' Union v. S.G. Chemicals and Dyes Trading Limited and Another, 1986, and Regional Manager, SBI v. Mahatma Mishra, 2006.

- S.G. Chemical and Dyes Trading Employees’ Union v. S.G. Chemicals and Dyes Trading Limited and Another (1986): The company closed its office without paying employees their due wages, leading to a complaint by the trade union. The Labour Court ruled the closure illegal and deemed the termination of services as an unfair labor practice, ordering compensation and reinstatement for affected workers.

- Regional Manager, SBI v. Mahatma Mishra (2006): An employee was terminated without proper notice, and the Labour Court ruled this as an unfair labor practice, stating that the management had engaged in unfair labor practices by not providing due process.

- Eveready Flash Light Company v. Labour Court Bareilly (1958): A worker was terminated after being put on probation despite having been tried and tested for his role. The Labour Court found this to be an unfair labor practice, as the probationary period was used to delay granting permanent status.

- Hind Construction and Engineering Co. Ltd. v. Their Workmen (1965): The Supreme Court ruled that dismissing workers for a single day of absence was unjustifiably severe and amounted to victimization, establishing that disproportionate punishment can constitute an unfair labor practice.

- Gangadhar Pillai v. Siemens Ltd. (2007): The Supreme Court held that intermittent engagement as a casual worker didn't automatically grant permanent status and the burden of proving unfair labor practices was on the workman. This case clarified the interpretation of unfair labor practices in prolonged temporary employment .


Conclusion

Unfair labour practices pose a significant challenge to maintaining fair and equitable labour relations. The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, and its Fifth Schedule provide a comprehensive legal framework for identifying and addressing these practices 


🔖 Blog by Chandan Sha | For more legal insights, stay tuned to Study on Law Hills.


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Study on Law Hills is a legal blog that simplifies Indian law for students and professionals. From Constitution to Criminal Law, it offers:

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