TOWARDS HARMONIOUS
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
Dr.
P.D.Shenoy *
India took a bold
and far-reaching step in the early 90’s to re-orient its economy.
Since then the strategy has been to accelerate growth by linking
Indian economy to the world economic order. This implied greater
interaction at international level in trade, technology, investment
and enhanced mobility of the labour force. Barriers have progressively
been reduced to facilitate globalization of Indian economy.
The globalization
process has speeded up the economic growth rate making the Indian
economy one of the ten fastest growing economies in the world.
The average annual growth in the post-reforms period between 1992-93
and 2000-01 has been 6.1 per cent, which is higher than the average
growth of 5.8 per cent during the preceding decade. We have now
set an ambitious target of 8 per cent GDP growth per annum during
the 10th Plan. According to a study by the Confederation of Indian
Industries (CII) to achieve the 8 per cent growth rate, the Indian
industry will have to grow at 11 per cent.
Higher growth rate
is possible in a climate of harmonious industrial relations. It
will contribute to higher investment, improved productivity and
efficiency needed for competing in global markets. The accelerated
growth in the 90s has been attributed to a significant improvement
to the industrial relations scenario according to a Labour bureau
survey. The mandays lost due to strikes and lockouts during the
last decade has indicated a declining trend. At present, the mandays
lost is less than 0.5 per cent of the number of mandays worked.
This reflects a sense of discipline and responsibility among workers.
Industrial harmony,
which is no doubt vital to the success of the country’s planned
economic development, is equally necessary to promote social cohesion
and create goals among all those involved in integrating individual,
sectional interests with those of the enterprise at the micro
level and those of the nation at the macro level.
Workers are interested
in decent wages, social security, speedy redressal of grievances
and in having a say in decisions in matters that vitally affect
them. They are interested in their growth, welfare, and development.
Employers, on the other hand, would like to see that workers are
disciplined and that there is an increase in productivity and
profitability. They also wish to properly utilise human resources
and have some degree of flexibility in personnel decisions to
adjust enterprise policies to meet the emerging competitive environment
blended with high technology.
The Government
considers its responsibility to maintain industrial peace and
harmony in order to safeguard the interests of workers and employers
and ensure the continued availability of their joint products
and services at reasonable prices. The State has, therefore, assumed
powers to regulate labour relations. It has, since Independence,
encouraged mutual settlement, collective bargaining, conciliation,
voluntary arbitration and adjudication as the principal means
of resolving industrial conflicts. It has also recognised trade
union rights of workers and their promotion through democratic
means and has intervened through legislative action for enhancing
living and working conditions of workers and promoting social
security.
Indian labour
force had a tremendous increase both in magnitude and quality
as the country witnessed an unprecedented growth in industrialisation
and urbanisation for four decades since 1950. The Government set
up a National Commission on Labour in mid 1960s to ensure a better
deal for workers and a co-operative and healthy industrial relationship.
The Commission under the Chairmanship of Justice Gajendragadkar,
a former Chief Justice of India, produced a wealth of information
and recommendations that guided a spate of labour legislations
during the next thirty years. The guiding principles of the labour-related
laws were to promote workers’ welfare and ensure social security
but without disturbing industrial harmony.
Since the appointment
of the First National Commission on Labour, there has been a sea
change in the labour scene because of manifold increase in industrial
activities, adoption of several labour standards of the International
Labour Organisation (ILO) and introduction of new economic policy
in 1991 which has, as already mentioned, set forth the process
of globalization. This has changed the country’s mindset. Protectionism,
which the Indian industry enjoyed for over four decades, is giving
way to liberalisation, privatisation and competition which have
a tremondous impact on the labour force. The emerging scenario
of globalisation makes it imperative for a new thinking in the
labour market.
Opinion has been
expressed from time to time that nearly 165 labour laws need a
review to tune them with the future needs and demands. The industry
has been crying for amending the labour laws to remove ‘roadblocks’
in increasing efficiency among the labour force or in introducing
new technologies and rationalise their manpower base. The Indian
Labour Conference too, at its 34th Session in April 1999, expressed
the view that provisions of a large number of labour laws enacted
by the Centre and the States had become either obsolete or redundant
in the light of fast and sweeping changes taking place. It recommended
creation of an appropriate mechanism for review, simplification,
rationalisation, and suitable codification of labour laws with
a view to removing all irritants and stumbling blocks. In October,
1999 the Second National Commission on Labour (NCL)was appointed
under the chairmanship of a former Labour Minister, Shri Ravindra
Varma. The recommendations of the Second Labour Commission come
at a time when the economy is facing a host of challenges while
moving away from controls to competition. These include the ailing
public sector undertakings, disinvestment, voluntary retirement
schemes and infrastructural weaknesses. The definition of the
‘worker’ in view of the revolution in the information technology
industry, tremendous growth in the service sector and the emergence
of ‘knowledge workers’ needs a re-thinking.
The process of
globalisation has led to growth in the informal sector as establishments
increasingly go for outsourcing of work. This has extended the
formal sector into the informal sector. Various labour laws including
provision of social security and dispute redressal mechanism need
a reappraisal in view of the emerging scenario. Moreover, they
need to be extended with necessary modifications to the workers
in the informal sector who constitute over 90 per cent of the
country’s labour force. This is important for a healthy industrial
climate in the country.
There is no substitute
for growth and it has to be with social justice, necessary for
a harmonious and peaceful industrial climate. Inaugurating the
38th session of the Indian Labour Conference, the Prime Minister
Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, emphasised that reforms should have
a human face. Commenting upon the industrial relations, the Prime
Minister asserted that labour force is important and indispensable
in today’s age of technological revolution and economic liberalisation.
Shri Vajpayee said that technology and capital are the creation
of labour and there is no conflict between labour and capital
in Indian philosophy.
Industrial peace
has been an article of faith and the social partners have to ensure
as to how best and how soon we are going to translate this into
action in the changed dispensation.
*
Labour Secretary,Government of India
