Industrial Labour Interview Preparation Guide

From employer's perspective, unitary approach means:

☛ The staffing policies should be exercised to unify the efforts. They should motivate the employees.
☛ The objectives of the organization should be discussed with the employees.
☛ A reward system should exist to secure loyalty and commitment from the employees
☛ Line managers should take the responsibility of their team.
☛ Staff-management conflicts arise form lack of information and inadequate presentation of management policies.
☛ Personal objectives of the employees should be integrated with the overall objectives of the organization.

The major steps of collective bargaining are:

☛ Preparatory - In this stage the negotiation team is formed which comprises of the members of both the teams. Both the sides need to take a stock of their situation to find the matters which they need to take up discussion, their stand on it.

☛ Discussion - In this stage the ground rules governing the negotiation process are set with the agreement of both the parties.

☛ Proposal - The issue for which the meeting is called is defined and the possible solutions are put forth.

☛ Bargaining - This is the phase where actual bargaining takes place and its nitty gritties are decided.

☛ Settlement - After a consensus is reached, this stage consists of effective joint implementation of the agreement.

These activities include strike, lock outs, gherao etc which means putting up a fight with the management. Hence, they are called militant functions. They are carried out for following purposes:

a.) Rise in wages
b.) Rise in the status of workers
c.) Protection against injustice

Lock out is a management's tool in which an employer prevents the workers from working. This is a pressure tactic used by the management.

Conciliators and mediation officers attempt to resolve differences between parties by offering the input of a neutral third party into the matters in dispute. They then file a report with the Minister.

A strike is a cessation of work, a refusal to work or to continue work by employees in combination or in concert with a common understanding, or a slow-down or other concerted activity on the part of employees designed to restrict or limit production for the purpose of compelling an employer to agree to terms or conditions of employment.

Job analysis is the process of studying and collecting information relating to operations and responsibilities of a specific job.

Job analysis is a systematic exploration of activities within a job. It is a basic technical procedure that is used to define duties and responsibilities and accountabilities of the job.

Each job has certain ability requirements associated with it. Job analysis is a process used to identify these requirements.

Industrial relations are the relations between employees, employers, government and trade unions within the organizational structure.

The industrial relations system is a system of relationship between all the parties involved. A sound IR system will create an environment conducive for organizational growth and labour welfare.

The unitary approach believes that the employees and employers share the same objectives, interests and purposes. They work hand-in-hand for the betterment of the organizations. However, this system expects loyalty from the employees.

Importance of collective bargaining to employees:

☛ It increases the strength of employees as a group.
☛ It helps in boosting their self respect and level of motivation
☛ It increases their sense of responsibility
☛ It helps in reaching a quick and fair settlement for employee's issues.