1rade unlon AcL 1926

The existence oI a strong and recognized trade union is a pre-requisite to industrial

peace. Decisions taken through the process oI collective bargaining and
negotiations between employer and unions are more inIluential. Trade unions play
an important role and are helpIul in eIIective communication between the workers
and the management. They provide the advice and support to ensure that the
diIIerences oI opinion do not turn into major conIlicts. The central Iunction oI a
trade union is to represent people at work. But they also have a wider role in
protecting their interests. They also play an important educational role, organizing
courses Ior their members on a wide range oI matters. Seeking a healthy and saIe
working environment is also prominent Ieature oI union activity.

Cb[ecLlves of 1rade unlon AcL 1926
Better Working Conditions 1o secure beLLer worklng condlLlons for Lhe
workers
eLLer Wages 1o lmprove Lhe economlc loL of employees by securlng for
Lhem beLLer wages
Bonus1o secure bonus for Lhe employees from Lhe proflL of Lhe concern
#esist Unsuitable Schemes 1o reslsL schemes of Lhe managemenL whlch
reduce employmenL eg raLlonallzaLlon and auLomaLlon
Secure WelIare: - 1o secure welfare of employees Lhrough group schemes
whlch glves beneflL Lo every employee
!rotect interest oI Workers1o proLecL Lhe lnLeresLs of employees by Laklng
acLlve parLlclpaLlon ln Lhe managemenL
Social WelIare1o secure soclal welfare of Lhe employees
rganizational Growth and Stability1o secure organlzaLlonal sLablllLy
growLh and leadershlp




#ole oI trade Union in Industrial Disputes
ostly Collective Bargaining takes place quietly and agreements are
Quickly reached by the union and the employer. ccasionally disagreements
do occur and the two sides cannot agree. In theses cases the union may
decide to take industrial Action.
Industrial Action takes diIIerent Iorms. It could mean an overtime ban; a
work to rule or a Strike. There are strict laws which unions have to Iollow
when they take industrial Action.
A Strike is only called as a last resort. Strikes are oIten in the news but are
rare. Both sides have a lot to lose. Employers lose income because oI
interruptions to production or services. Employees lose their Salaries and
may Iind that their jobs are at risk.
Usually employers and employees will go to some lengths to avoid the cost
oI strike Action to both groups.
Short title, extent and commencement.
This Act may be called the
1
|***| Trade Unions Act, 1926.

2
|(2) It extends to the whole oI India
3
|***|.|
(3) It shall come into Iorce on such date
4
as the Central Government may, by
notiIication in the IIicial Gazette, appoint.
1. The word ~Indian omitted by Act 38 of 1964, sec. 3 (w.e.f. 1-4-1965).
2. Subs. by the A.O. 1950, for former sub-section (2).
3. The words ~except in the State of 1ammu and Kashmir subs. for the
words ~except Part B States by Act 3 of 1951, sec. 3 and Sch. and were
omitted by Act 51 of 1970, sec. 2 and Sch. (w.e.f. 1-9-1971).
4. Came into force on 1-6-1927, see Gazette of India, 1927, Pt. I, p. 467.


Trade Union :
1rade unlon SecLlon 2(h) of Lhe 1rade unlons AcL 1926 has deflned a Lrade unlon as Any comblnaLlon
wheLher Lemporary or permanenL formed prlmarlly for Lhe purpose of regulaLlng Lhe relaLlons beLween
workmen and employers or beLween workmen and workmen or beLween employers and employers or
for lmposlng resLrlcLlve condlLlons on Lhe conducL of any Lrade or buslness and lncludes any federaLlon
of Lwo or more Lrade unlons" 1hen Lhls deflnlLlon Lalks abouL Lhree relaLlonshlps 1hey are relaLlonshlp
beLween Lhe Workmen and workmen Workmen and employers Lmployers and employers

Features of trade unions :
leaLures of Lrade unlons lL ls an organlsaLlon formed by employees or workers lL ls formed on a
conLlnuous basls lL ls a permanenL body and noL a casual or Lemporary one lL ls formed Lo proLecL and
promoLe all klnds of lnLeresLs economlc pollLlcal and soclalof lLs members 1he domlnanL lnLeresL wlLh
whlch a unlon ls concerned ls however economlc lL lncludes federaLlons of Lrade unlons also lL
achleves lLs ob[ecLlves Lhrough collecLlve acLlon and group efforL

Ub|ectives of Trade Union :
Cb[ecLlves of 1rade unlon 1o lmprove Lhe economlc loL of employees by securlng for Lhem beLLer
wages 1o secure beLLer worklng condlLlons for Lhe workers 1o secure bonus for Lhe employees from
Lhe proflL of Lhe concern 1o reslsL schemes of Lhe managemenL whlch reduce employmenL eg
raLlonallsaLlon and auLomaLlon 1o secure welfare of employees Lhrough group schemes whlch glve
beneflL Lo every employee 1o proLecL Lhe lnLeresLs of employees by Laklng acLlve parLlclpaLlon ln Lhe
managemenL 1o secure soclal welfare of Lhe employees 1o secure organlsaLlonal sLablllLy growLh and
leadershlp

Functions of Trade Unions :
luncLlons of 1rade unlons roadly speaklng Lrade unlons perform Lwo Lypes of funcLlons vlz MlllLanL
luncLlons Cne seL of acLlvlLles performed by Lrade unlons leads Lo Lhe beLLermenL of Lhe poslLlon of
Lhelr members ln relaLlon Lo Lhelr employmenL 1he alm of such acLlvlLles ls Lo ensure adequaLe wages
secure beLLer condlLlons of work and employmenL geL beLLer LreaLmenL from employers eLc When Lhe
unlons fall Lo accompllsh Lhese alms by Lhe meLhod of collecLlve bargalnlng and negoLlaLlons Lhey adopL
an approach and puL up a flghL wlLh Lhe managemenL ln Lhe form of soslow sLrlke boycoLL gherao eLc
Pence Lhese funcLlons of Lhe Lrade unlons are known as mlllLanL or flghLlng funcLlons lraLernal
luncLlons AnoLher seL of acLlvlLles performed by Lrade unlons alms aL renderlng help Lo lLs members ln
Llmes of need and lmprovlng Lhelr efflclency 1rade unlons Lry Lo fosLer a splrlL of cooperaLlon and
promoLe frlendly relaLlons and dlffuse educaLlon and culLure among Lhelr members 1hey also arrange
for legal asslsLance Lo lLs members lf necessary esldes Lhese Lhey underLake many welfare measures
for Lhelr members eg school for Lhe educaLlon of chlldren llbrary readlngrooms lndoor and ouL
door games and oLher recreaLlonal faclllLles Some Lrade unlons even underLake publlcaLlon of some
magazlne or [ournal 1hese acLlvlLles whlch may be called fraLernal funcLlons depend on Lhe avallablllLy
of funds whlch Lhe unlons ralse by subscrlpLlon from members and donaLlons from ouLslders and also
on Lhelr compeLenL and enllghLened leadershlp

Functions of Trade Unions :
luncLlons of 1rade unlons AnoLher broad classlflcaLlon of Lhe funcLlons of unlons may be as follows
lnLramural acLlvlLles 1hese conslsL of Lhose funcLlons of Lhe unlons LhaL lead Lo Lhe beLLermenL of
employmenL condlLlons such as ensurlng adequaLe wages and salarles eLc for whlch Lhe meLhods
adopLed may be collecLlve bargalnlng negoLlaLlons sLrlkes eLc LxLramural acLlvlLles 1hese acLlvlLles
help Lhe employees Lo malnLaln and lmprove Lhelr efflclency or producLlvlLy eg measures lnLended Lo
fosLer a splrlL of cooperaLlon promoLe frlendly relaLlons and dlffuse educaLlon among members and
varlous oLher Lypes of welfare measures ollLlcal acLlvlLles Modern Lrade unlons also Lake up pollLlcal
acLlvlLles Lo achleve Lhelr ob[ecLlves Such acLlvlLles may be relaLed Lo Lhe formaLlon of a pollLlcal parLy
or Lhose reflecLlng an aLLempL Lo seek lnfluence on publlc pollcy relaLlng Lo maLLers connecLed wlLh Lhe
lnLeresLs of worklng class

Criticism of Trade Unions :
CrlLlclsm of 1rade unlons Lack of educaLlon makes Lhe workers narrowmlnded and prevenLs Lhem from
Laklng longLerm vlews 1hus anyLhlng whlch does noL resulL ln an lmmedlaLe reward becomes
unaLLracLlve Lo Lhem 1hls aLLlLude ls responslble for many sLrlkes and lockouLs ln lndusLrlal concerns
1rade unlons may noL welcome raLlonallsaLlon and lmproved meLhods of producLlon for Lhe fear LhaL
some of Lhe workers wlll be puL ouL of work 1herefore Lhey resorL Lo go slow pollcy LhaL reLards
lndusLrlal progress When labour unlons sLrlke because of llloglcal grounds lncalculable losses occur Lo
producers communlLy and Lhe naLlon 1hese are harmful Lo Lhe workers also 1hey suffer because of Lhe
loss of wages 1hey creaLe arLlflclal scarclLy of labour by demandlng LhaL only unlon personnel should be
employed y undue lnslsLence on Lhe paymenL of sLandard raLes of wages Lhey have only leveled down
Lhe earnlngs of Lhe efflclenL workers

Motivation to )oin Unions :
MoLlvaLlon Lo !oln unlons CreaLer argalnlng ower 1he lndlvldual employee possesses very llLLle
bargalnlng power as compared Lo LhaL of hls employer lf he ls noL saLlsfled wlLh Lhe wage and oLher
condlLlons of employmenL he can leave Lhe [ob Make Lhelr volces Peard 1he deslre for selfexpresslon
ls a fundamenLal human drlve for mosL people uon'L you agree wlLh LhaL? All of us wlsh Lo share our
feellngs ldeas and oplnlons wlLh oLhers Slmllarly Lhe workers also wanL Lhe managemenL Lo llsLen Lo
Lhem Mlnlmlse ulscrlmlnaLlon 1he declslons regardlng pay work Lransfer promoLlon eLc are hlghly
sub[ecLlve ln naLure l may raLe you very dlfferenLly as compared Lo your markeLlng Leacher! Slmllarly
Lhe personal relaLlonshlps exlsLlng beLween Lhe supervlsor and each of hls subordlnaLes may lnfluence
Lhe managemenL 1hus Lhere are chances of favorlLlsms and dlscrlmlnaLlons Sense of SecurlLy 1he
employees may [oln Lhe unlons because of Lhelr bellef LhaL lL ls an effecLlve way Lo secure adequaLe
proLecLlon from varlous Lypes of hazards and lncome lnsecurlLy such as accldenL ln[ury lllness
unemploymenL eLc 1he Lrade unlon secure reLlremenL beneflLs of Lhe workers and compel Lhe
managemenL Lo lnvesL ln welfare servlces for Lhe beneflL of Lhe workers Sense of arLlclpaLlon 1he
employees can parLlclpaLe ln managemenL of maLLers affecLlng Lhelr lnLeresLs only lf Lhey [oln Lrade
unlons 1hey can lnfluence Lhe declslons LhaL are Laken as a resulL of collecLlve bargalnlng beLween Lhe
unlon and Lhe managemenL Sense of elonglngness Many employees [oln a unlon because Lhelr co
workers are Lhe members of Lhe unlon AL Llmes an employee [olns a unlon under group pressure lf he
does noL he ofLen has a very dlfflculL Llme aL work Cn Lhe oLher hand Lhose who are members of a
unlon feel LhaL Lhey galn respecL ln Lhe eyes of Lhelr fellow workers 1hey can also dlscuss Lhelr problem
wlLh' Lhe Lrade unlon leaders

tructure of Trade Unions :
SLrucLure of 1rade unlons lanL level unlons 1he flrsL level ln Lhe sLrucLure from below ls Lhe planL level
unlon 1hls comprlses Lhe unlons ln one organlsaLlon or facLory lease noLe LhaL only seven members
are requlred Lo form a unlon 1hls has lead Lo mulLlple unlons ln one facLory (We wlll dlscuss Lhe deLalls
of Lhls aspecL ln Lhe problems faced by unlons ln lndla) Local Level federaLlons 1hls ls Lhe second level
ln Lhe sLrucLure from below 1he local Lrade unlon federaLlon holds LogeLher Lhe planL level unlons aL
Lhe local level ln a parLlcular crafL and lndusLry 1hese local level federaLlons mlghL be afflllaLed Lo elLher
some reglonal level or naLlonal level federaLlon or Lhese may be lndependenL 8eglonal level
federaLlons 1hese are Lhe organlsaLlons of all Lhe consLlLuenL unlons ln a parLlcular sLaLe or reglon
naLlonal federaLlons 1hese are naLlonal level bodles Lo whlch planL level unlons local unlons or reglonal
level unlons may geL afflllaLed 1hese are Lhe apex bodles aL Lhe Lop of Lhe sLrucLure 1hey acL as
coordlnaLlng bodles 1hese naLlonal federaLlons may have Lhelr own reglonal or sLaLe level coordlnaLlng
bodles Lo whlch Lhe planL level unlons may geL afflllaLed

Problems & weaknesses of Trade Unions :
roblems weaknesses of 1rade unlons uneven CrowLh 1he Lrade unlonlsm ln lndla ls characLerlsed
by uneven growLh boLh lndusLrywlse and areawlse 1rade unlons are popular ln blg lndusLrles and Lhe
degree of unlonlsaLlon varles wldely from lndusLry Lo lndusLry esldes Lrade unlon acLlvlLles are
concenLraLed ln a few sLaLes and ln blgger lndusLrlal cenLers malnly due Lo concenLraLlon of lndusLrles ln
Lhose places LlmlLed Membershlp 1he number of Lrade unlons ln lndla has lncreased conslderably uL
Lhls has been followed by Lhe decllnlng membershlp per unlon MulLlpllclLy of unlons 1here exlsL
several Lrade unlons ln Lhe same esLabllshmenL 1he mulLlpllclLy of unlons ls Lhe resulL of ouLslde
leadershlp and labour laws 1he law permlLs and glves sancLlLy Lo small unlons Any seven persons can
form a unlon under Lhe 1rade unlons AcL 1926 1hls AcL confers rlghLs on such a unlon lL ls allowed
under Lhe AcL Lo ralse dlspuLes flle sulLs go Lo conclllaLlon and even bargaln wlLh employers 1herefore
small secLlons of workers are encouraged Lo form separaLe unlons 1here ls no resLrlcLlon on Lhe
number of unlons Lo be reglsLered ln one esLabllshmenL CuLslde Leadershlp 1rade unlons ln lndla are
led largely by people who Lhemselves are noL workers 1hese ouLslders are pollLlclans lnLellecLuals and
professlonals havlng no experlence of work ln lndusLry CuLslders conLlnue Lo domlnaLe Lhe Lrade unlons
Lo advance Lhelr personal lnLeresLs

Problems & weaknesses of Trade Unions :
roblems weaknesses of 1rade unlons llnanclal roblems 1he flnanclal poslLlon of Lhe Lrade unlons ls
weak because Lhelr average yearly lncome ls very low and lnadequaLe 1he subscrlpLlon raLes are very
low under condlLlons of mulLlpllclLy of unlons a unlon lnLeresLed ln lncreaslng lLs membershlp flgures
keeps Lhe subscrlpLlon raLe unduly low As a resulL Lhe funds wlLh Lhe unlons are lnadequaLe and Lhey
cannoL underLake welfare programmes for Lhelr members AnoLher reason for Lhe weak flnanclal
poslLlon of unlon ls LhaL large amounLs of subscrlpLlon dues remaln unpald by Lhe workers esldes Lhls
unlons do noL have proper sLaff and organlsaLlon Lo collecL subscrlpLlons lndlfferenL ALLlLude of
Workers ln lndla a large number of workers have noL [olned any unlon Moreover all Lhe members of
Lhe Lrade unlons do noL show lnLeresL ln Lhelr affalrs 1he aLLendance aL Lhe general meeLlngs of Lhe
unlons ls very low under such clrcumsLance Lrade unlonlsm cannoL be expecLed Lo make much
progress

uggestions for tbe development Unions :
SuggesLlons for Lhe developmenL unlons Cne unlon ln Cne lndusLry MulLlpllclLy of unlons ln Lhe same
planL leads Lo lnLerunlon rlvalry LhaL ulLlmaLely cuLs aL Lhe rooL of Lhe Lrade unlon movemenL lL
weakens Lhe power for collecLlve bargalnlng and reduces Lhe effecLlveness of workers ln securlng Lhelr
leglLlmaLe rlghLs 1herefore Lhere should be only one unlon ln one lndusLry ald unlon Cfflclals
Cenerally Lhe Lrade unlons avall Lhe servlces of Lhe honorary workers due Lo lack of funds 1he pracLlce
should be sLopped because honorary offlce bearers cannoL do full [usLlce Lo Lhe Lask enLrusLed Lo Lhem
because of lack of Llme aL Lhelr dlsposal Suppose LhaL you are asked Lo do someLhlng ln Lhe offlce
whlch requlres a loL of responslblllLy ?ou are noL offered any Lhlng ln reLurn Cf course Lhe moLlvaLlonal
levels wlll come down unless and unLll you are a very passlonaLe or a commlLLed person 1he same
applles Lo Lhe offlclals of Lhe unlons 1herefore pald unlon offlclals should be employed who are
persons of proven lnLegrlLy and who are able Lo evaluaLe Lhe demands of workers so LhaL Lhey may
negoLlaLe wlLh employers on equal fooLlng uevelopmenL of Leadershlp from WlLhln lL ls of cruclal
lmporLance LhaL Lrade unlons are managed by Lhe workers and noL by ouLslders Leadershlp should be
developed from wlLhln Lhe rank and flle of Lhe workers 8ecognlLlon of 1rade unlons 1lll recenLly Lhe
employers refused recognlLlon Lo Lhe Lrade unlons elLher on Lhe basls LhaL unlons conslsLed of only a
mlnorlLy of employees or Lwo or more unlons exlsLed