DISPUTE

Disputes mainly relate to the strife between employers and their employees. According to the Industrial Dispute Act , 1947 sec(2(k)), Industrial disputes mean any dispute or difference between employers and employers, or between employers and workmen, or between workmen and workmen, which is connected with the employment or nonemployment or terms of employment or with the conditions of labor of any person.

Forms of Industrial Dispute:

The outcome of industrial dispute is locking out from

the employer side and workers may resort to strike,

Gherao, picketing etc.

Strike: - Strike is quitting work by a group of workers

for getting their demands accepted by the employer. It

is a powerful tool used by the trade unions to

pressurize the management to accept their demands.

Various types of strikes are

Economic Strike: - Strike in concern with

economic reason like wages bonus or working

conditions.

Sympathetic Strike: - Strike to support the other

group of workers on strike within the organization

or for the sympathy to union workers on strike in

other industries.

General Strike: - Strike of all the unions in a

region or workers of a particular industry for the

common demands of the workers concerned.

Sit down Strike: - When workers stop doing the

work but also do not leave the place of work. It is

also known as tool down or pen down strike.

Slow Down strike: - When workers remain on

their jobs but slow down the output of their work.

Lock Out: - Lockout is the step taken by the employer

to put pressure on workers. Employer close down the

workplace until the workers agree to continue the work

on the terms and conditions as given by the employer

Gherao: - Gherao is the action taken by workers

under which they restrict the employer to leave the

work premises or residence. The person concerned is

put away in a ring made of human beings i.e. workers.

Gheraos are also being adopted by educational and

others institutions. It is an illegal act according to the

Law.

Picketing: - When workers are not allowed to report

for the work by deputing some men at the factory

gates. If picketing does not involve any violence it is

perfectly legal. It is done to bring into the notice of

public that there is dispute between workers and

management.

CAUSES OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTE

The causes of industrial disputes can be

broadly classified into two categories:

economic and non-economic causes. The

economic causes will include issues relating to

compensation like wages, bonus, allowances,

and conditions for work, working hours, leave

and holidays without pay, unjust layoffs and

retrenchments

The non-economic factors will include victimization of workers, ill treatment by staff members, sympathetic strikes, political factors, indiscipline etc.

Wages and allowances: Since the cost of living index is increasing, workers generally bargain for higher wages to meet the rising cost of living index and to increase their standards of living. In 2002, 21.4% of disputes were caused by demand of higher wages and allowances. This percentage was 20.4% during 2003 and during 2004 increased up to 26.2%. In 2005, wages and allowances accounted for 21.8% of disputes.

Personnel and retrenchment: The personnel and retrenchment have also been an important factor which accounted for disputes. During the year 2002, disputes caused by personnel were 14.1% while those caused by retrenchment and layoffs were 2.2% and 0.4% respectively. In 2003, a similar trend could be seen, wherein 11.2% of the disputes were caused by personnel, while 2.4% and 0.6% of disputes were caused by retrenchment and layoffs. In year 2005, only 9.6% of the disputes were caused by personnel, and only 0.4% were caused by retrenchment.

Indiscipline and violence: From the given table, it is evident that the number of disputes caused by indiscipline has shown an increasing trend. In 2002, 29.9% of disputes were caused because of indiscipline, which rose up to 36.9% in 2003. Similarly in 2004 and 2005, 40.4% and 41.6% of disputes were caused due to indiscipline respectively. During the year 2003, indiscipline accounted for the highest percentage (36.9%) of the total time-loss of all disputes, followed by cause-groups wage and allowance and personnel with 20.4% and11.2% respectively. A similar trend was observed in 2004 where indiscipline accounted for 40.4% of disputes.

Bonus: Bonus has always been an

important factor in industrial disputes. 6.7% of the disputes were because of bonus in 2002 and 2003 as compared to 3.5% and 3.6% in 2004 and 2005 respectively.

Leave and working hours: Leaves and working hours have not been so important causes of industrial disputes. During 2002, 0.5% of the disputes were because of leave and hours of work while this percentage increased to 1% in 2003. During 2004, only 0.4% of the disputes were because of leaves and working hours.

Recent industrial disputes in India

While Tata Motors has decided to move its Nano factory out of Singur after violent protests by farmers, this isn't the first time that there has been a standoff between industry and farmers unwilling to surrender land.

Here are four other large industrial projects in India that have recently been wracked by protests

1 In August, the Supreme Court gave South Korean steel firm POSCO the use of large swathes of forestland in Orissa for a $12-

billion plant that protesting farmers said would displace thousands of people. The protests delayed the start of construction on the plant, which could be India's single biggest foreign investment to date.

2 In the same month, the Supreme Court allowed Vedanta Resources to mine bauxite in hills considered sacred by tribal people in Orissa. The mining would feed an alumina refinery, part of an $800-million project that has been widely opposed. Environmentalists say the open-cast mine will wreck the rich biodiversity of the remote hills and disrupt key water sources vital for farming.

3 Goa, famous for its beaches and tourist industry, in January dropped plans to build special economic zones for industry after protests from political and environmental groups.

4 West Bengal last year aborted a plan for a special economic zone for a chemicals complex in Nandigram after fierce protests. At least 35 villagers were killed in clashes between locals and communist party workers and the state government put all SEZs on hold in the state.

DISPUTE RESOLUTION

Judicial dispute resolution

The legal system provides a necessary structure for the resolution of many disputes. However, some disputants will not reach agreement through a collaborative processes. Some disputes need the coercive power of the state to enforce a resolution. Perhaps more importantly, many people want a professional advocate when they become involved in a dispute, particularly if the dispute involves perceived legal rights, legal wrongdoing, or threat of legal action against them.

The most common form of judicial dispute resolution is litigation. Litigation is initiated when one party files suit against another. In the United States, litigation is facilitated by the government within federal, state, and municipal courts. The proceedings are very formal and are governed by rules, such as rules of evidence and procedure, which are established by the legislature. Outcomes are decided by an impartial judge and/or jury, based on the factual questions of the case and the application law. The verdict of the court is binding, not advisory; however, both parties have the right to appeal the judgment to a higher court. Judicial dispute resolution is typically adversarial in nature, for example, involving antagonistic parties or opposing interests seeking an outcome most favorable to their position.

Retired judges or private lawyers often become arbitrators or mediators; however, trained and qualified non-legal dispute resolution specialists form a growing body within

the field of ADR. In the United States of America, many states now have mediation or other ADR programs annexed to the courts, to facilitate settlement of lawsuits.

Extrajudicial dispute resolution

Some use the term dispute resolution to refer only to alternative dispute resolution (ADR), that is, extrajudicial processes such as arbitration, collaborative law, and mediation used to resolve conflict and potential conflict between and among individuals, business entities, governmental agencies, and (in the public international law context) states. ADR generally depends on agreement by the parties to use ADR processes, either before or after a dispute has arisen. ADR has experienced steadily increasing acceptance and utilization because of a perception of greater flexibility, costs below those of traditional litigation, and speedy resolution of disputes, among other perceived advantages. However, some have criticized these methods as taking away the right to seek redress of grievances in the courts, suggesting that extrajudicial dispute resolution may not offer the fairest way for parties not in an equal bargaining relationship, for example in a dispute between a consumer and a large corporation. In addition, in some circumstances, arbitration and other ADR processes may become as expensive as litigation or more so.[

Disputes and conflict in the

workplace

Conflicts at work take many forms. It might be an individual with a grievance, a problem between an employee and a manager or conflict between two co-workers. Any conflict can get in the way of work and make your business less productive.

Dealing with conflict at an early stage to nip it in the bud and stop the situation developing into a full-blown dispute will save time, money and stress later on, for both the employer and employees.

Some of the issues that can cause conflict between individuals and groups at work include:

ineffective or insufficiently trained management

unfair treatment unclear job roles poor communications poor work environment lack of equal opportunities bullying and harassment unresolved problems from the past an increase in workload

There are some key steps an employer can take to help ensure disputes and conflict don't

arise too often, and to enable them to be dealt with when they do:

train managers to handle difficult conversations with employees

encourage open expression of opinions recognise the importance of feelings listen to what people have to say focus on interests not positions and

personalities have clear discipline, grievance and dispute

procedures for dealing with conflict write mediation into your contracts of

employment and/or individual disciplinary and grievance procedures

consider outside help where necessary, for example, using a third party by way of mediation, see Acas' advice on mediation and our mediation services.

Having one-to-one conversations about issues requires a great deal of sensitivity and empathy. You must try to:

listen to what individuals are saying and try to recognise any underlying causes of unhappiness or stress

ask questions in a calm and measured way to put the other person at ease and let them speak freely

rephrase or reinterpret what's been said so

that problems can be seen in a different light

lead by example and set the right tone for people to.

talk to your line manager or an HR staff member, or your union or staff representative

get advice from an outside source, like the Acas helpline

keep a record of relevant events: include dates and times, plus a description of what happene

keep copies of anything relevant, eg letters, memos, emails, notes of meetings

make a formal complaint (follow your employer's procedures - if you have a union representative or other

adviser, ask them to help you state your grievance clearly)

consider using a third party by way of mediation, see Acas' advice on mediation and our mediation services.

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