COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

Importance of Collective Bargaining On the basis of the experience of advanced countries,

where collective bargaining is said to have made considerable advances, some indicators of mature collective bargaining practices are hereby identified. These indicators are:

(a) a high degree at collective bargaining as measured in terms of the proportion of workers covered by collective agreements; (b) qualitative conduct of the parties to collective bargaining both before a situation warranting negotiations develops and the methods followed at the time of arriving at agreements;

(c) the right priorities assigned to different methods in the agreements and their changing pattern over time; and (d) a structure of bargaining with emphasis on central bargaining which is purported to give some order and stability to labourmanagement relations.

Importance of Collective Bargaining contd. a method for the regulation of the (i) It provides
conditions of employment of those who are directly concerned about them. (ii) It provides a solution to the problem of sickness in industry, and ensures old age pension benefits and other fringe benefits.

(iii) It creates new and varied procedures for the solution of the problems as and when they ariseproblems which vex industrial relations; and its form can be adjusted to meet new situations. Since basic standards are laid down, the employee is assured that he will be required to work under the stipulated conditions incorporated in the agreement; and the employer is protected from unfair competition by those who are engaged in a similar industry.

(iv) It provides a flexible means for the adjustment of wages and employment conditions to economic and technological changes in the industry, as a result of which the chances for conflicts are reduced. (v) As a vehicle of industrial peace, collective bargaining has no equal. It is the most important and significant aspect of labour-management relations, and extends the democratic principle from the political to the industrial field.

(vi) It builds up a system of industrial jurisprudence by introducing civil rights in industry. In other words, it ensures that management is conducted by rules rather than by arbitrary decisions.

Prof. Dunlop
He is of the opinion that collective bargaining: (i) a system which establishes, revises and administers many of the rules which govern the workers' place of work; (ii) a procedure which determines the quantum of compensation which em-ployees should receive and which influences the distribution of economic ills; and

iii.

a method of settling disputes during the pendency of an agreement and of determining, after its expiry, whether a dispute should be reopened and whether a strike or a lockout should be resorted to or not.

Functions of Collective Process of Social Change Bargaining

Collective bargaining is not confined solely to the economic relations between employers and employees. It is a technique whereby an inferior social class or group exerts a never-slackening pressure for a bigger share in the social sovereignty as well as more welfare, security and liberty for individual members.

Peace Treaty Collective bargaining is a sort of peace treaty between two parties in continual conflict. However, the settlement between the two parties is a compromise. The extent to which each side is willing to accept less than its original bargaining demands depends, in part, on how strong it is vis-a-vis its opponent.

"The compromise is a temporary truce with neither side being completely satisfied with the results. Each would like to modify it at the earliest opportunity. Since the contract is almost always of a short duration, each begins immediately to prepare a new list of demands, including previously unsatisfied demands, and to build up its bargaining strength in anticipation of the next power skirmish."

Industrial Jurisprudence Collective bargaining is "a method of introducing civil rights into industry, that is, of requiring that management be conducted by rules rather than by arbitrary decisions.

It establishes rules which define and restrict the traditional. authority exercised by employers over their employees, placing a part of the authority under the joint control of union and management.

Industrial Jurisprudence

It is a rule-making or legislative process, in the sense that it formulates the terms and conditions under which labour and management will co-operate and work together over a certain stated period. It is an executive process, for both management (foremen and supervisory officials) and trade union officials share the responsibility of enforcing the rules.

It is a Judicial process, for in every collective agreement there is a clause/ provision regarding the interpretation of the agreement. Through the grievance procedure, any difference dispute concerning the application of the agreement to particular cases is settled. Where the agreement does not specifically cover the dispute, it may be settled according to the unwritten life of shop practices