Grievance Procedures

A grievance is basically a complaint. In a workplace a grievance generally occurs as a result of treatment

which is perceived to be unfair or harsh at the hands of a work colleague. Typical situations which might
result in a grievance include:

 Being passed over for promotion

 Being given unpopular tasks more often than other workers (picked on)
 Sexual harassment
 Favouritism in the sharing of overtime work hours

Employers need to implement measures to allow any such problems to be resolved effectively and fairly.
One such measure is to implement 'grievance procedures', the purpose of which is to make it easier for
employees to come forward if they feel they are a victim of unfair treatment.

If employees have difficulty dealing with significant workplace issues then the likely result is a reduction
in workplace morale, increased staff turnover or even the risk of the employee taking legal action.

Grievance procedures will commonly contain:

1 A recommendation that the first action the aggrieved party take is to attempt to resolve the problem
by talking directly with the person causing perceived to be perpetrating unfair or harsh treatment.
2 If any such attempt to find a resolution is unsuccessful, the method by which to bring the matter to
the attention of appropriate authorities.
3 The amount of time which the complainant has to commence the grievance.
4 The process by which the grievance will be investigated, including the length of time within which
matter must be actioned.
5 The confidentiality that must be observed
6 Guidance on mediation strategies
7 The process for appointing persons to arbitrate on the matter

Grievance Handling: Definition, Features

Causes, and Effects
Grievance Handling: Definition, Features Causes, and Effects !
Introduction and Definition of Grievance:

A grievance is any dissatisfaction or feeling of injustice having connection with one’s employment situ-
ation which is brought to the attention of management. Speaking broadly, a grievance is any dissatisfac-
tion that adversely affects organizational relations and productivity. To understand what a grievance is, it
is necessary to distinguish between dissatisfaction, complaint, and grievance.

1. Dissatisfaction is anything that disturbs an employee, whether or not the unrest is expressed in words.

2. Complaint is a spoken or written dissatisfaction brought to the attention of the supervisor or the shop
steward.

3. Grievance is a complaint that has been formally presented to a management representative or to a

union official.

According to Michael Jucious, ‘grievance is any discontent or dissatisfaction whether expressed or not,
whether valid or not, arising out of anything connected with the company which an employee thinks,
believes or even feels to be unfair, unjust or inequitable’.

In short, grievance is a state of dissatisfaction, expressed or unexpressed, written or unwritten, justified or

unjustified, having connection with employment situation.

Features of Grievance:

1. A grievance refers to any form of discontent or dissatisfaction with any aspect of the organization.

2. The dissatisfaction must arise out of employment and not due to personal or family problems.

3. The discontent can arise out of real or imaginary reasons. When employees feel that injustice has been
done to them, they have a grievance. The reason for such a feeling may be valid or invalid, legitimate or
irrational, justifiable or ridiculous.

4. The discontent may be voiced or unvoiced, but it must find expression in some form. However,
discontent per se is not a grievance. Initially, the employee may complain orally or in writing. If this is
not looked into promptly, the employee feels a sense of lack of justice. Now, the discontent grows and
takes the shape of a grievance.

5. Broadly speaking, thus, a grievance is traceable to be perceived as non-fulfillment of one’s expec-

tations from the organization.

Causes of Grievances:

Grievances may occur due to a number of reasons:

1. Economic:
Employees may demand for individual wage adjustments. They may feel that they are paid less when
compared to others. For example, late bonus, payments, adjustments to overtime pay, perceived
inequalities in treatment, claims for equal pay, and appeals against performance- related pay awards.

2. Work environment:

It may be undesirable or unsatisfactory conditions of work. For example, light, space, heat, or poor
physical conditions of workplace, defective tools and equipment, poor quality of material, unfair rules,
and lack of recognition.

3. Supervision:

It may be objections to the general methods of supervision related to the attitudes of the supervisor
towards the employee such as perceived notions of bias, favouritism, nepotism, caste affiliations and
regional feelings.

4. Organizational change:

Any change in the organizational policies can result in grievances. For example, the implementation of
revised company policies or new working practices.

5. Employee relations:

Employees are unable to adjust with their colleagues, suffer from feelings of neglect and victimization
and become an object of ridicule and humiliation, or other inter- employee disputes.

6. Miscellaneous:

These may be issues relating to certain violations in respect of promotions, safety methods, transfer,
disciplinary rules, fines, granting leaves, medical facilities, etc.

Effects of Grievance:

Grievances, if not identified and redressed, may adversely affect workers, managers, and the organiza-
tion.

The effects are the following:

1. On the production:

a. Low quality of production

b. Low productivity

c. Increase in the wastage of material, spoilage/leakage of machinery

d. Increase in the cost of production per unit

2. On the employees:

a. Increase in the rate of absenteeism and turnover

b. Reduction in the level of commitment, sincerity and punctuality

c. Increase in the incidence of accidents

d. Reduction in the level of employee morale.

3. On the managers:

a. Strained superior-subordinate relations.

b. Increase in the degree of supervision and control.

c. Increase in indiscipline cases

d. Increase in unrest and thereby machinery to maintain industrial peace

Need for a Formal Procedure to Handle Grievances:

A grievance handling system serves as an outlet for employee frustrations, discontents, and gripes like a
pressure release value on a steam boiler. Employees do not have to keep their frustrations bottled up until
eventually discontent causes explosion.

The existence of an effective grievance procedure reduces the need of arbitrary action by supervisors
because supervisors know that the employees are able to protect such behavior and make protests to be
heard by higher management. The very fact that employees have a right to be heard and are actually
heard helps to improve morale. In view of all these, every organization should have a clear-cut procedure
for grievance handling.

Top 4 Features of a Good Grievance Handling

Procedure
Four features of a good grievance handling procedure are as follows: 1. Fairness 2. Provisions should be
clear cut 3. Procedural steps 4. Promptness.
1. Fairness:

The attitude of supervisors is important here. All supervisors should accept the employee’s right of
appeal as long as no bypassing is involved. Fairness is needed not only to be just but also to keep the
procedure viable.

If employees develop the belief that the procedure is only a sham, then its value will be lost, and other
means should be sought to deal with the grievances. This also involves following the principles of natural
justice, as in the case of a disciplinary procedure.

2. Provisions should be clear cut:

No grievance procedure can be expected to work satisfactorily unless there are definite provisions,
consistently adhered to, determining what is to be done, when any by them.

For example, every employee should know:

(i) to whom complaints are to be addressed,

(ii) in what form (oral or written),

(iii) what restrictions, and

(iv) how long a complainant should expect to wait before finding out what action has been taken or
planned in connection with their complaints.

3. Procedural steps:

The grievance procedure should be sufficiently simple so that it can easily and quickly be explained to
each new employee before they begin working for the organization and so that it can be readily
understood even by a person who has had relatively little formal education.

4. Promptness:

Promptness is needed to avoid the bitterness and frustration that can come from delay. Prompt action is
not only desirable from the complainant’s point of view; it is also in management’s interest. Undue delay
can be costly in the growth and spread of employee dissatisfaction.

What are the Basic Considerations for Grievance

Handling?
Basic Considerations for grievance handling are as follows:
Grievance refers to any discontent or dissatisfaction, whether expressed or not and whether valid or not,
arising out of anything connected with the company that an employee thinks, believes or even feels, is
unfair, unjust or inequitable.

Grievances have considerable significance as harbingers of industrial disputes. Unresolved grievances

can become an industrial dispute that is why grievances are considered to be tips of the iceberg on
industrial conflict.

Grievances can be described as “embryonic” an dispute which needs to be resolved at the earliest
opportunity. The three cardinal principles of grievance settlement are – settlement at the lowest level,
settlement as quickly as possible and settlement to the satisfaction of the aggrieved.

In the first place, in handling grievances, stress must be laid either on the causes of trouble or upon the
resulting trouble. If an employee is disgruntled because he was not given a due promotion, some may call
the unreceived promotion the grievance whereas others may call the disgruntled attitude the grievance.

Secondly, a grievance arises out of something connected with the company. Something in the company,
either its activity or supervision or policy may be the source of a grievance. Thirdly, discontent and
dissatisfaction may be expressed or implied. However, most companies recognise as grievances only
those that are expressed in writing.

Channels of handling grievances should be carefully developed and its information should be
disseminated amongst the employee. It is necessary that employees know the channels through which
they ventilate grievances. There are two procedures for the settlement of grievances – open door policy
and step-ladder procedure.

Some companies have an informal and open-door policy for grievance handling and employees are free
to go up the top level executives with their grievances for redressal. In large companies open door policy
is not suitable. Consequently, most companies have introduced a step-ladder procedure for the settlement
of grievances.

Under this procedure, an aggrieved employee will first present his grievance to the first-line supervisor.
In other words, a grievance should be dealt with in the first instance at the lowest level.

If it is settled, there is no dissatisfaction to the aggrieved employee, the matter will end there. In case he
is not satisfied with the decision of the supervisor, the employee with grievance will go to the next higher
authority the departmental head.

Even if the grievance of the employee is not settled at this stage, provision must be there for a third step
in handling grievances. At the third stage, a joint grievance committee reviews the grievance. Employees
failing to get satisfaction even at this stage should have ready access to the chief executive of the
company.

The top executive of the company is established as a final court of appeal. In most of the procedures, the
personnel officer does not form a step but his assistance is also available for handling grievances. In
handling grievances, management should avoid, as far as possible, the legalistic approach because
constant references to standing orders might complicate the case.

Objectives and Benefits of Grievance Handling

Procedure
The grievance procedure is the method by which a grievance is filed and carried through different steps
to an ultimate decision.

Objectives of Grievance Handling Procedure:

Objectives of the grievance handling procedure are as follows:

1. To enable the employee to air their grievance

2. To clarify the nature of the grievance

3. To investigate the reasons for dissatisfaction

4. To obtain, where possible, a speedy resolution to the problem

5. To take appropriate actions and ensure that promises are kept

6. To inform the employee of their right to take the grievance to the next stage of the procedure, in the
event of an unsuccessful resolution

Benefits of Grievance Handling Procedure:

Benefits that accrue to both the employer and employees are as follows:

1. It encourages employees to raise concerns without fear of reprisal.

2. It provides a fair and speedy means of dealing with complaints.

3. It prevents minor disagreements developing into more serious disputes.

4. It serves as an outlet for employee frustrations and discontents.

5. It saves employer’s time and money as solutions are found for workplace problems. It helps to build an
organizational climate based on openness and trust.

Details of a grievance procedure/machinery may vary from organization to organization.

The four stages of the machinery are briefly discussed here:

1. Initial level at which grievance occurs:

The greatest opportunity to redress a grievance is to resolve it at the initial level at which it occurs. A
worker’s grievance should be resolved by their immediate boss, the first-line supervisor. The first stage
of the procedure usually involves three persons—the aggrieved employee, his immediate boss and the
union representative.

It is possible to involve the union in laying down the framework of the grievance procedure and thereaf-
ter restrain union involvement in the actual process, at least in the first two stages. Supervisory role needs
to be strengthened, with appropriate training in problem-solving skills, grievance handling, and
counselling.

2. Intermediate stage:

If the dispute is not redressed at the initial state at supervisor’s level, it is usually referred to the head of
the concerned department. It is important that the management assumes prime responsibility for the
settlement of a grievance. At the intermediate level, grievance can be settled with or without union
involvement.

3. Organization level:

If a grievance is not settled at the intermediate level also, it can be referred to the top management.
Usually, a person of a level not less than the general manager designated for the purpose directly handles
the issue. At this level, it is very difficult to reconcile the conflicting interests.

4. Third-party mediation:

If the grievance has not been settled bilaterally within the organization, it goes to a third party for
mediation. Arbitration or adjudication or the matter may even be referred to a labour court. At this stage,
the parties concerned lose control over the way the grievance is settled.

In case of mediation (conciliation or arbitration), the mediator has no authority to decide, but in case of
the labour court or an adjudicator, the decision will be binding on the parties, subject to statutory
provisions for appeal to higher courts.

At any stage of the grievance machinery, the dispute must be handled by some members of the man-
agement. In grievance redressal, responsibility lies largely with the management. And, as already dis-
cussed, grievances should be settled promptly at the first stage itself.

The following steps provide a measure of guidance to the manager dealing with grievances:

1. Acknowledge dissatisfaction:

Managerial/supervisory attitude to grievances is important. They should focus attention on grievances,

and not turn away from them. Ignorance is not bliss; it is the bane of industrial conflict. Arrogant attitude
on the part of supervisors and managers aggravates the problem.
2. Define the problem:

Instead of trying to deal with a vague feeling of discontent, the problem should be defined properly.
Sometime the wrong complaint is given. By effective listening, one can make sure that a true complaint
is voiced.

3. Get the facts:

Facts should be separated from fiction. Although grievances result in hurt feelings, the effort should be to
get the facts behind the feelings. There is need for a proper record of each grievance.

4. Analyse and decide:

Decisions on each grievance will have a precedent effect. While no time should be lost in dealing with
them, it is no excuse to be slipshod about it. Grievance settlements provide opportunities for
managements to correct themselves, and thereby come closer to the employees. Horse-trading in
grievance redressal due to union pressures may temporarily bring union leadership closer to the
management, but it will surely alienate the workforce away from the management.

5. Follow up:

Decisions taken must be followed up earnestly. They should be promptly communicated to the concerned
employee. If a decision is favourable to the employee, their immediate boss should have the privilege of
communicating the same.

Industrial Disputes: Definition, Forms and Types

Industrial Disputes: Definition, Forms and Types!

Concept of industrial disputes:

In common parlance, dispute means difference or disagreement of strife over some issues between the
parties. As regards industrial dispute, since its settlement proceeds as per the legal provisions contained
in the ‘Industrial Disputes’ Act, 1947, hence it seems pertinent to study the concept of industrial disputes
from a legalistic angle.

According to Section 2 (k) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, the term ‘industrial dispute’ means “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 non- employment or the terms of
employment and conditions of employment of any person”.

The above definition is too broad and includes differences even between groups of workmen and
employers engaged in an industry. However, in practice, industrial disputes mainly relate to the
difference between the workmen and the employers.
Dispute differs from discipline and grievance. While discipline and grievance focus on individuals,
dispute focuses on collectivity of individuals. In other words, the test of industrial dispute is that the
interest of all or majority of workmen is involved in it.

The following principles judge the nature of an industrial dispute:

1. The dispute must affect a large number of workmen who have a community of interest and the rights
of these workmen must be affected as a class.

The above definition is too broad and includes differences even between groups of workmen and
employers engaged in an industry. However, in practice, industrial disputes mainly relate to the
difference between the workmen and the employers.

Dispute differs from discipline and grievance. While discipline and grievance focus on individuals,
dispute focuses on collectivity of individuals. In other words, the test of industrial dispute is that the
interest of all or majority of workmen is involved in it.

The following principles judge the nature of an industrial dispute:

1. The dispute must affect a large number of workmen who have a community of interest and the rights
of these workmen must be affected as a class.

These strikes are also called the ‘sympathy strikes’. In this form of strike, the pressure is applied not
against the employer with whom the workmen have a dispute, but against the third person who has good
trade relations with the employer.

However, these relations are severed and the employer incurs losses. This form of strike is popular in the
USA but not in India. The reason being, in India, the third person is not believed to have any locus standi
so far the dispute between workers and employer is concerned.

General and political strikes and bandhs come under the category of other strikes:

Lock-Outs:

Lock-out is the counter-part of strikes. While a ‘strike’ is an organised or concerted withdrawal of the
supply of labour, ‘lock-out’ is withholding demand for it. Lock-out is the weapon available to the
employer to shut-down the place of work till the workers agree to resume work on the conditions laid
down by the employer. The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 defined lock-out as “the temporary shutting
down or closing of a place of business by the employer”.

Lock-out is common in educational institutions also like a University. If the University authority finds it
impossible to resolve the dispute raised by the students, it decides to close-down (or say, lockout) the
University till the students agree to resume to their studies on the conditions laid down by the University
authority. Recall, your own University might also have declared closure sometimes for indefinite period
on the eve of some unrest / dispute erupted in the campus.
Gherao:

Gherao means to surround. It is a physical blockade of managers by encirclement aimed at preventing the
egress and ingress from and to a particular office or place. This can happen outside the organisational
premises too. The managers / persons who are gheraoed are not allowed to move for a long time.

Sometimes, the blockade or confinements are cruel and inhuman like confinement in a small place
without light or fans and for long periods without food and water. The persons confined are humiliated
with abuses and are not allowed even to answer “calls of nature”.

The object of gherao is to compel the gheraoed persons to accept the workers’ demands without recourse
to the machinery provided by law. The National Commission on Labour has refused to accept ‘gherao’ as
a form of industrial protest on the ground that it tends to inflict physical duress (as against economic
press) on the persons gheraoed and endangers not only industrial harmony but also creates problems of
law and order.

Workmen found guilty of wrongfully restraining any person or wrongfully confining him during a gherao
are guilty under Section 339 or 340 of the Indian Panel Code of having committed a cognizable offence
for which they would be liable to be arrested without warrant and punishable with simple imprisonment
for a term which may be extended to one month or with a fine up to Rs. 500, or with both.

Gherao is a common feature even in educational institutions. You might have seen in your own
University officers sometimes gheraoed by the employees / students to compel the officers to submit to
their demands. Here is one such real case of gherao.

Gherao of the vice chancellor:

The non-teaching employees of a Central University in the North-East India had some demands with the
University authority for quite some time. Non-confirmation of some of the employees even after
completion of six years service was one of the main demands. That the Vice Chancellor was to resign on
31st October was known to all in the University.

As the last pressure tactic, the employees started Vice Chancellor’s gherao on 31st October at 11.00 a.m.
They shut down the entrance gate of the administrative building at 3.00 p.m. to block the egress and
ingress from and to the office in the administrative building.

The Vice Chancellor was kept confined in his office chamber. He was humiliated throughout the gherao
by using abuses, disconnecting his telephone line, not allowing him food and water and even not
allowing him to answer “calls of nature”. This scene lasted for 18 hours and was over only by 5 a.m. next
day when some 50 C.R.P.F jawans with local police came from the city which is about 20 kms. away
from the University Campus.

They broke the entrance gate of administrative building, rescued the Vice Chancellor and arrested 117
employees confining the Vice Chancellor under Section 340 of the Indian Penal Code and kept them
behind bars for a day.
On 1st November, the Vice Chancellor handed over the charge of his office to the senior most Professor
of the University at his residence in the city. In the wee hours on 2nd November, he left for where he
came from. The aftermath of gherao created a tuneful atmosphere in the University Campus for about
two weeks.

Picketing and Boycott:

Picketing is a method designed to request workers to withdraw cooperation to the employer. In picketing,
workers through display signs, banners and play-cards drew the attention of the public that there is a
dispute between workers and employer.

Workers prevent their colleagues from entering the place of work and pursuade them to join the strike.
For this, some of the union workers are posted at the factory gate to pursuade others not to enter the
premises but to join the strike.

Boycott, on the other hand, aims at disrupting the normal functioning of the organisation. The striking
workers appeal to others for voluntary withdrawal of co-operation with the employer. Instances of
boycotting classes and examinations are seen in the Universities also.

Types of Industrial Disputes:

The ILO’ has classified the industrial disputes into two main types.

They are:

1. Interest Disputes

2. Grievance or Right Disputes.

They are discussed one by one:

1. Interest Disputes:

These disputes are also called ‘economic disputes’. Such types of disputes arise out of terms and
conditions of employment either out of the claims made by the employees or offers given by the
employers. Such demands or offers are generally made with a view to arrive at a collective agreement.
Examples of interest disputes are lay-offs, claims for wages and bonus, job security, fringe benefits, etc.

2. Grievance or Right Disputes:

As the name itself suggests, grievance or right disputes arise out of application or interpretation of
existing agreements or contracts between the employees and the management. They relate either to
individual worker or a group of workers in the same group.
That’s way in some countries; such disputes are also called ‘individual disputes’. Payment of wages and
other fringe benefits, working time, over-time, seniority, promotion, demotion, dismissal, discipline,
transfer, etc. are the examples of grievance or right disputes.

If these grievances are not settled as per the procedure laid down for this purpose, these then result in
embitterment of the working relationship and a climate for industrial strife and unrest. Such grievances
are often settled through laid down standard procedures like the provisions of the collective agreement,
employment contract, works rule or law, or customs /usage in this regard. Besides, Labour Courts or
Tribunals also adjudicate over grievance or interest disputes.

Generally, industrial disputes are considered as ‘dysfunctional’ and ‘unhealthy’. These are manifested in
the forms of strikes and lock-outs, loss of production and property, sufferings to workers and consumers
and so on. But, sometimes industrial disputes are beneficial as well.

It is the dispute mainly which opens up the minds of employers who then provide better working
conditions and emoluments to the workers. At times, disputes bring out the causes to the knowledge of
the public where their opinion helps resolve them.

6 Preventive Machineries used for Handling

Industrial Disputes in India
Some of the major preventive machinery for handling industrial disputes in India are as follows: 1.
Worker’s Participation in Management 2. Collective Bargaining 3. Grievance Procedure 4. Tripartite
Bodies 5. Code of Discipline 6. Standing Orders.

Lasting industrial peace requires that the causes of industrial disputes should be eliminated. In other
words, preventive steps should be taken so that industrial disputes do not occur.But if preventive
machinery fails, then the industrial dispute settlement machinery should be activated by the Government
because non-settlement of disputes will prove to be very costly to the workers, management and the
society as a whole.

The preventive machinery has been set up with a view to creating harmonious relations between labour
and management so that disputes do not arise.

It comprises of the following measures:

1. Worker’s participation in management

2. Collective bargaining

3. Grievance procedure

4. Tripartite bodies
5. Code of discipline

6. Standing orders

1. Worker’s Participation in Management:

It is a method whereby the workers are allowed to be consulted and to have a say in the management of
the unit. The important schemes of workers’ participation are: Works committee, joint management
council (JMC), shop council and joint council. These have been discussed later in this book.

2. Collective Bargaining:

According to Dale Yoder, “Collective bargaining is the term used to describe a situation in which
essential conditions of employment are determined by a bargaining process undertaken by representatives
of a group of workers on the one hand and of one or more employers on the other.”

Collective bargaining not only includes negotiation, administration and enforcement of the written
contracts between the employees and the employers, but also includes the process of resolving labour-
management conflicts.

The role of collective bargaining for solving the issues arising between the management and the workers
at the plant or industry level has been widely recognised. Labour legislation and the machinery for its
implementation prepare a framework according to which industrial establishments should operate.

But whatever labour laws may lay down, it is the approach of employers and trade union leaders which
matters. Unless both are enlightened, industrial harmony is not possible. Therefore, the solution to
common problems can be found directly through negotiation between both parties and in this context, the
scope of collective bargaining is very wide.

3. Grievance Procedure:
Grievances are symptoms of conflicts in the enterprise. So, they should be handled very promptly and efficiently.
Coping with grievances forms an important part of a manager’s job. The manner in which he deals with
grievances determines his efficiency in dealing with the subordinates. A manager is successful if he is able to build
a team of satisfied workers by removing their grievances. This would help in the prevention of industrial disputes
in the organisation.

4. Tripartite Bodies:

Industrial relations in India have been shaped largely by principles and policies evolved through tripartite
consultative machinery at industry and national levels. The aim of the consultative machinery is to bring
the parties together for mutual settlement of differences in a spirit of cooperation and goodwill.

Indian Labour Conference (ILC) and Standing Labour Committee (SLC) have been constituted to suggest
way and means to prevent disputes. The representatives of the workers and employers are nominated to
these bodies by the Central Government in consultation with the All-India organisations of workers and
employers.
The agenda of ILC/SLC meetings is settled by the Labour Ministry after taking into consideration the
suggestions set to it by member organisations. These two bodies work with minimum procedural rules to
facilitate free and fuller discussions among the members. The ILC meets once a year, whereas the SLC
meets as and when necessary.

The functions of ILC are:

(a) to promote uniformity in labour legislation;

(b) to lay down procedure for the settlement of industrial disputes; and

(c) to discuss matters of all-India importance as between employers and employees.

The ILC advises the Government on any matter referred to it for advice, taking into account suggestions
made by the state governments and representatives of the organisations of workers and employers. The
Standing Labour Committee’s main function is to consider and determine such questions as may be
referred to it by the Plenary Conference or the Central Government and to render advice, taking into
account the suggestions made by various state governments, and the organisations of workers and
employers.

5. Code of Discipline:

Code of Discipline is a set of self-imposed mutually agreed voluntary principles of discipline and good
relations between the management and the workers in industry. In India, Code of Discipline was
approved by the 16th Indian Labour Conference held in 1958.

It contains three sets of codes which have already been discussed later in this book. According to
National Commission on Labour, the Code in reality has been of limited use. When it was started, very
favourable hopes were thought of it; but soon it started acquiring rust.

Main reasons for the lapses on the part of the employers and employees to secure harmonious
relations through the Code may be listed as below:

(i) There was absence of self-imposed voluntary restraint on the part of the parties.

(ii) The worsening of economic situation led to the erosion of real wages of the workers.

(iii) The rivalry among labour representatives.

(iv) Conflicts between the Code and the law.

(v) The state of indiscipline is the body politic, that is, the whole set up is charged with indiscipline and
the Code could not work.

(vi) The employers could not implement the Code in many respects for reasons beyond their control.
6. Standing Orders:

The terms and conditions of employment have been a bone of contention between labour and
management since the advent of factory system. To prevent the emergence of industrial strife over the
conditions of employment, one important measure is the Standing Orders. Under the Industrial
Employment Standing Orders Act, 1946, it was made obligatory that Standing Orders would govern the
conditions of employment.

The Standing Orders regulate the conditions of employment from the stage of entry in the organisation of
the stage of exits from the organisation. Thus, they constitute the regulatory pattern for industrial
relations. Since the Standing Orders provide Do’s and Don’ts, they also act as a code of conduct for the
employees during their working life within the organisation.

The Standing Orders define with sufficient precision the conditions of employment under the employers
and hold them liable to make the said conditions known to workmen employed by them. These orders
regulate the conditions of employment, discharge, grievances, misconduct, disciplinary action, etc. of the
workmen employed in industrial undertakings.

These issues are potential problems in industrial relations. Unresolved grievances can become industrial
disputes; and disciplinary action in the wake of disciplinary proceedings against misconduct may also
lead to industrial dispute.