(a) whether the Government propose to amend the labour laws;
(b) if so, whether the Government propose to make it
mandatory for conducting election after every two years to end
monopoly of recognised labour unions and establish industrial
democracy through such an amendment;
(c) if so, the time by which it is likely to be amended; and
(d) if not, the reasons therefor?
MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT ( SHRI MUNI LALL )
(a) to (d): Review/updation of labour laws is a continuous
process and amendments/fresh legislations are made depending on
the results of the review. The Government have also set up the
Second National Commission on Labour on 15.10.1999 which would
comprehensively review the labour laws and suggest appropriate
changes in the labour legislation/policy. The Commission would
suggest rationalisation of existing labour laws relating to
labour in the organised sector and an umbrella legislation for
ensuring a minimum level of protection to the workers in the
unorganised sectors.
At present the Code of Discipline, which is a voluntary
code with no legislative back up requires management to recognise
unions in accordance with the criteria for recognition of unions
evolved at the 16th Session of the Indian Labour Conference in
1958. The criteria, in brief, mention that where there is more
than one union, a union claiming recognition should have been
functioning for at least one year after registration; where there
is only one union, then this condition would not apply. It
further states that the membership of the union should cover at
least 15% in the establishment concerned. A union could also
claim to be recognized as a representative union for an industry
in a local area if it has a membership of at least 25% of the
workers of that industry in that area. When a union has been
recognized, there should be no change in its position for a
period of two years.