Trade Union

Grievance in Industry
Collective Bargaining
 Trade Union
Objectives of Trade Unions
 Representation
 Negotiation
 Voice in decisions affecting workers
 Member services -
 Education and training
 Legal assistance
 Financial discounts
 Welfare benefits
 Functions of Trade Unions

Functions of trade union can be classified into two broad categories-

 Militant Functions
 Fraternal Functions

Militant Functions
One set of activities performed by trade unions leads to the betterment of the
position of their members in relation to their employment. The aim of such
activities is to ensure adequate wages, secure better conditions of work and
employment, get better treatment from employers, etc. When the unions fail
to accomplish these aims by the method of collective bargaining and
negotiations, they adopt an approach and put up a fight with the management
in the form of go-slow tactics, strike, boycott, gherao, etc.
 Functions of Trade Unions

Fraternal Functions
 To take up welfare measures for improving the morale of
workers
 To generate self confidence among workers
 To encourage sincerity and discipline among workers
 To provide opportunities for promotion and growth
 To protect women workers against discrimination
 Importance of Trade Unions
Trade unions help in accelerated pace of economic development in many ways as
follows:
 by helping in the recruitment and selection of workers.
 by inculcating discipline among the workforce
 by enabling settlement of industrial disputes in a rational manner
 by helping social adjustments. Workers have to adjust themselves to the new
working conditions
 promoting and maintaining national integration by reducing the number of
industrial disputes
 incorporating a sense of corporate social responsibility in workers
 achieving industrial peace
 Reasons for Joining Trade Unions

 Greater Bargaining Power

 Minimize Discrimination
 Sense of Security
 Sense of Participation
 Sense of Belongingness
 Platform for self-expression
 Betterment of relationships
 Grievance in Industry

Grievance means any type of dissatisfaction or discontentment’s arising out of

factors related to an employee’s job which he thinks are unfair. A grievance
arises when an employee feels that something has happened or is happening to
him who he thinks is unfair, unjust or inequitable. In an organization, a grievance
may arise due to several factors such as:
 Violation of management’s responsibility such as poor working conditions
 Violation of company’s rules and regulations
 Violation of labor laws
 Violation of natural rules of justice such as unfair treatment in promotion, etc

Various sources of grievance may be categorized under three heads:

(i) management policies, (ii) working conditions, and (iii) personal factors
 Sources Of Grievance

 Grievance resulting from management policies include:

 Wage rates
 Leave policy
 Overtime
 Lack of career planning
 Role conflicts
 Lack of regard for collective agreement
 Disparity between skill of worker and job responsibility
 Sources Of Grievance

 Grievance resulting from working conditions include:

 Poor safety and bad physical conditions
 Unavailability of tools and proper machinery
 Negative approach to discipline
 Unrealistic targets
 Grievance resulting from inter-personal factors include
 Poor relationships with team members
 Autocratic leadership style of superiors
 Poor relations with seniors
 Conflicts with peers and colleagues
 Grievance Procedure
 Open door policy: Under this policy, the aggrieved employee is free
to meet the top executives of the organization and get his grievances
redressed. Such a policy works well only in small organizations.
However, in bigger organizations, top management executives are
usually busy with other concerned matters of the company.
 Step ladder policy: Under this policy, the aggrieved employee has to
follow a step by step procedure for getting his grievance redressed. In
this procedure, whenever an employee is confronted with a
grievance, he presents his problem to his immediate supervisor. If the
employee is not satisfied with superior’s decision, then he discusses
his grievance with the departmental head. The departmental head
discusses the problem with joint grievance committees to find a
solution.
Step ladder policy
 Collective Bargaining

Collective bargaining:
 is a collective process in which representatives of both the management and
employees participate.
 is a continuous process which aims at establishing stable relationships
between the parties involved.
 not only involves the bargaining agreement, but also involves the
implementation of such an agreement.
 attempts in achieving discipline in the industry
 is a flexible approach, as the parties involved have to adopt a flexible
attitude towards negotiations
 Bargaining Form and Tactics

 Distributive bargaining:. It involves haggling over the distribution of surplus. Under it, the
economic issues like wages, salaries and bonus are discussed. In distributive bargaining, one party’s
gain is another party’s loss
 Integrative bargaining: This involves negotiation of an issue on which both the parties may gain, or
at least neither party loses. For example, representatives of employer and employee sides may
bargain over the better training program or a better job evaluation method. Here, both the parties
are trying to make more of something.
 Attitudinal restructuring: This involves shaping and reshaping some attitudes like trust or distrust,
friendliness or hostility between labor and management. When there is a backlog of bitterness
between both the parties, attitudinal restructuring is required to maintain smooth and harmonious
industrial relations. It develops a bargaining environment and creates trust and cooperation among
the parties.
 Intra-organizational bargaining: It generally aims at resolving internal conflicts. This is a type of
maneuvering to achieve consensus with the workers and management. Even within the union, there
may be differences between groups. For example, skilled workers may feel that they are neglected
or women workers may feel that their interests are not looked after properly.
 Bargaining Form and Tactics
 Distributive bargaining: It involves haggling over the distribution of surplus. Under it,
the economic issues like wages, salaries and bonus are discussed. In distributive
bargaining, one party’s gain is another party’s loss.
 Integrative bargaining: This involves negotiation of an issue on which both the parties
may gain, or at least neither party loses. For example, representatives of employer and
employee sides may bargain over the better training program or a better job evaluation
method. Here, both the parties are trying to make more of something.
 Attitudinal restructuring: This involves shaping and reshaping some attitudes like trust
or distrust, friendliness or hostility between labor and management. When there is a
backlog of bitterness between both the parties, attitudinal restructuring is required to
maintain smooth and harmonious industrial relations. It develops a bargaining
environment and creates trust and cooperation among the parties.
 Intra-organizational bargaining: It generally aims at resolving internal conflicts. This is
a type of maneuvering to achieve consensus with the workers and management. Even
within the union, there may be differences between groups
 Collective Bargaining Process
The collective bargaining process comprises of five core steps:
 Prepare: This phase involves composition of a negotiation team. The negotiation team should consist of
representatives of both the parties with adequate knowledge and skills for negotiation.
 Discuss: Here, the parties decide the ground rules that will guide the negotiations. A process well
begun is half done and this is no less true in case of collective bargaining. An environment of mutual
trust and understanding is also created so that the collective bargaining agreement would be reached.
 Propose: This phase involves the initial opening statements and the possible options that exist to
resolve them. In a word, this phase could be described as ‘brainstorming’. The exchange of messages
takes place and opinion of both the parties is sought.
 Bargain: negotiations are easy if a problem solving attitude is adopted. This stage comprises the time
when ‘what if’ and ‘supposals’ are set forth and the drafting of agreements take place.
 Settlement: Once the parties are through with the bargaining process, a consensual agreement is
reached upon wherein both the parties agree to a common decision regarding the problem or the issue.
Importance of Collective Bargaining

 Importance to employees
 Collective bargaining develops a sense of self respect and responsibility among the
employees.
 It increases the strength of the workforce, thereby, increasing their bargaining
capacity as a group.
 Collective bargaining increases the morale and productivity of employees.
 It restricts management’s freedom for arbitrary action against the employees.
Moreover, unilateral actions by the employer are also discouraged.
 Effective collective bargaining machinery strengthens the trade unions movement.
 The workers feel motivated as they can approach the management on various
matters and bargain for higher benefits.
Importance of Collective Bargaining

 Importance to employers
 It becomes easier for the management to resolve issues at the bargaining
level rather than taking up complaints of individual workers.
 Collective bargaining tends to promote a sense of job security among
employees and thereby tends to reduce the cost of labor turnover to
management.
 Collective bargaining opens up the channel of communication between
the workers and the management and increases worker participation in
decision making.
 Collective bargaining plays a vital role in settling and preventing
industrial disputes.
Importance of Collective Bargaining

 Importance to society
 Collective bargaining leads to industrial peace in the country
 It results in establishment of a harmonious industrial climate
which supports which helps the pace of a nation’s efforts
towards economic and social development since the obstacles to
such a development can be reduced considerably.
 The discrimination and exploitation of workers is constantly
being checked.
 It provides a method or the regulation of the conditions of
employment of those who are directly concerned about them.
THANK YOU