In this article, written by Parth Verma, he tells about the introduction, and the present- day scenario of Labour and Employment Laws.

Introduction

Labour laws and employment laws have been essentially derived from socialist republic state. Only the socialist republican state can best define the true usage of industrial labour laws because moral and ethical standards are the bedrock of a Social republican state and are hence given high importance. Labor and employment laws are quite important as they give structure to workplace, define what both employees and employers are responsible for and in some cases, also outline the federal regulations in order to give both parties, the direction necessary for resolving workplace conflict. These laws are also important because they enable businesses to devote more of their focus to productivity and profitability rather than giving constant energy and resources to problem-solving.

Industrial Jurisprudence

The theory or philosophy of law pertaining to the labour and employment laws for the industrial sector comes from the industrial revolution. When people became aware of their rights and felt a need to be more aware of how they should be treated, they started protesting for their rights hence Industrial laws were born.

Industrial Revolution of India

India got its industrial revolution a little late, as compared to the western countries. Though because of its complex relations with Britain which was ruling over India and using Indian people for further equipping their industrial revolution, hence as a consequential truth, Indian Industrial jurisprudence arose a bit late.

Evils of Industrialisation

Though there are many ill- effects of industrialisation, however they can be classified into two broad categories: Economic and Social ill- effects.

Economic ill- effects

Child labour 

Child Labour started to prevail which caused a severe economic problem (if seen in a large and a broad-minded context), as the children, which were now employed perhaps for helping their parent’s day to day monetary desire, if would have studied further would have gained better employment and hence they would have been taken to greater economic level. Thus a global economic level declined because of the Industrial revolution. This was further accompanied by a decline in the moral and ethical standards decline as poverty is anyday a breeding ground for all such evils.

Diseases

Diseases were another great cause of trouble as with modern machinery there were numerous smoke-related diseases and injuries caused by the operation of the machinery.

Some diseases that were a part of the Industrial Revolution were smallpox, typhus, typhoid, dysentery, diphtheria etc. The factories created a huge amount of smoke due to coal, which had huge carbon content, made environmental problems and breathing problems, that were new to people. The problem got further deepened because of the economic problems which people were facing due to low payment or payment not being given on- time. They were therefore not able to pay their medical bills hence their good health was delayed which further accompanied their further monetary growth as they were not able to go to their job, thus creating a vicious cycle and hence made them poorer.

Social problems

Workers had a very bad social aspect attached to their lives. They were severely maltreated. Their rights weren’t valued, they were treated nearly the same as slaves by their authority. There was nothing being done for their human rights. This deteriorated their working potential because of their low value and hence influenced low self- esteem. This created a lot of social disruption and discrimination between people pertaining to their standards. Low- class people then began feeling a need to rise and hence starting roaring for their status, by means of strikes and agitations of various sorts. The lower class then began uprising and started dominating the higher class to buy the means of collective conscience.

Working conditions were horrible in the industrial sector which caused many emotional and psychological problems. The working conditions were depressing which caused a very bad impact on the employees. The boss was usually very rude to the employees under him. Further that boss’ boss used to be rude with him, hence the main sufferers were the ones who were employed in the manual labour, as they were at the lowest level and had nobody to blame as such. Their hearts were not advocating their actions and hence the industrial potential wasn’t up to the level it should have been. They were doing the work just for the sake of it.

Industrial Peace and Industrial Harmony

Industrial peace is a two-way process, it doesn’t happen one-sided. Both the employer and the employee need to cooperate for the same. There are a few means by which any industry can attain peace and harmony like:

Induction of Spirit of Harmony

Inculcation of the spirit of harmony and brotherhood amongst employees and employers. Once given entry in the company must be accepted the way they are and the cultural, social, psychological (etc.) differences should be set aside and they all should work as one. Everybody must unite together in a company and work together for one cause. In the mean process, one should not forget or take for granted moral and ethical values.

Strict enforcement of rules

There should be strict enforcement of protocols pertaining to the soft conduct of both the employers and the employees. Government intervention here is very necessary because if the government frames laws it will be very easy for the industrial sector to promote better unity as by merely following them as they are, they can achieve social stability by the enforcement of such laws, as we cannot take this fact for granted that cultural differences make various disruptions (at times) as what may be good for one may be bad for another and vice- versa, hence by merely following the structure of such laws in the form of protocols, we can make it a universal deal which could promote social solidarity which is to say that every good thing shall be then perceived as good by all, no matter what.

Consent of employer and employee while drafting laws

The policies of a company must be constructed in consultation with the workers so that there is no confusion later on. The rules or terms must be stated explicitly and in clear terms so that it is clear in the mind of both parties and that it later doesn’t become a cause of dispute.

Industrial Relations

Effective communication is the key to achieve great heights in the modern world. One can make his/ her task 100 percent more effective, if there is a clear communication between people working in a particular sector and people of different sectors. Hence, special and explicit attention on effective communication within and outside an industry must be given.

People of different industries must honour each other and give honour where honour is due. 

The transactions must be clear and precise with no scope of confusion and it should be such which creates no confusion amongst industries, cash transactions are very important as its all about cash which very industry works for.

Trust should never be compromised on and must always be maintained no matter what. Industries must always be faithful to whatever they commit to one another in any circumstances, “frustration scenario” however is any day an exception to this. Companies should work by maintaining good contacts with other companies so that their overall production is on the higher side. Friendly relations with other companies helps in better functioning as then companies get to have better output as then there are more minds working upon an agenda hence better sharing of ideas takes place.

Industrial Adjudication

In legal terms, industrial adjudication is very important as it is a wonderful way to escape the disputes that arise in a company, in a formal yet best way possible, which is polite yet strict.

Practically, Industrial dispute primarily refers to the disengagement between employers and their employees. It is not a personal dispute of any one person. It engages a large number of workers’ association having a correlated interest.

In the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, industrial dispute means, “Difference between employer and employer or between employer and workmen or between workmen and workmen, or any dispute among these which are related to the employment or non-employment or terms and conditions of employment of any person”. The industrial dispute machinery as per industrial disputes Act, 1947 has the following branches: Credits: Toppr.com

Laissez faire

It is an ideal concept which advocates less government intervention in the market. This term has French roots, which essentially “mean to stay away”. It’s an economic philosophy of free-market capitalism. Laissez-faire offers the following benefits such as Autonomy, Innovation, Absence of taxes.

Theory of ‘hire and fire’

This is another theory according to which an employer is free to remove the employee, whenever he/she wants, which is usually done on a discriminatory basis and purely on the will of the employer. This is important, from the view of production, as it increases the potential of production, as everyone is competing for better production so that they can be hired. Hence in the mean process the production keeps on getting gets better and better. There are reasonable restrictions also on the part of employer (at times). Usually while dealing with a labour class population however such restrictions are not seen. This theory is seen bad as an employer cannot remove an employee merely based on discrimination which the employer assumes to be a true fact and hence justify discrimination.

Guiding principles of Industrial Adjudication

There are certain principles which guides the Industrial Adjudication process. These principles were kept in mind while drafting the laws pertaining to the Industrial disputes like the Industrial disputes Act, 1947. These principles are:

1. Public interest
2. Industrial harmony and goodwill
3. Development of industrial justice
4. Expert assistance
5. Socio-economic effects
6. Reference to facts and circumstances of each case
7. Tribunal to act in a judicial manner
8. Expediency is no consideration
9. Acceptability of decisions
10. Natural justice

Labour Policy

In India, we have many laws in India for various industrial aspects. We have plethora Labour laws in India, however their implementing specially in the rural areas we find major missing implementation of all these laws. However, in India we have many laws pertaining to employees and employers such as:

1. Minimum Wages Act, 1948, Payment of Wages Act, 1936.
2. Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, Payment of Bonus Act, 1965.
3. Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948.
4. Labour Welfare Fund Act (of respective States).
5. Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972.
6. Factories Act, 1948.
7. Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946.
8. Shops and Commercial Establishments Act (of respective States).

Labour Problems

It is needless to say that there are a number of problems in India pertaining to labour- employer relations. Particularly the employees in rural areas are ill- treated. Ranging from long working hours to no payment of their wages, they are severely maltreated. They are treated like slaves and are suppressed of their rights in every possible sense. They are deprived of their human rights to a huge extent. 

Labour laws is very crucial for a country like India wherein there is not just a huge population but a variety of economic standards as well. It is important to control the rich population so that they don’t overpower or suppress the poor population. India now has labour laws which tackles the related problems to a large extent.

Principles of Labour Legislation

There are various principles of labour legislations such as:

• Principle of Protection
• Principle of Social Justice
• Principle of Regulation
• Principle of Welfare
• Principle of Social Security
• Principle of Economic Development
• Principle of International Obligation

There are two main principles, i.e. social justice and social equity. There are other principles too.

Principle of Social justice

The principle of social justice essentially states that all social groups must be treated the same, no matter what. It aims to remove social inequality, as it can be clearly seen that certain groups have been subject to social disability in terms of employment or labour. It aims to provide equal employment opportunity to all regardless of social status of a person.

Social equity

This principle is essentially based on maintenance of legislations which is based on social equity of labour. Laws are to be updated from time to time, circumstances are not permanent, they keep on changing from time to time, hence there is a necessity to bring changes in the law accordingly. This intervention by the government for making modifications or amendments, to suit the changed situations are based upon the principle of social equity. In a nutshell, Social equity is setting up of equitable standards for all by means of legislative provisions and obligations to do so.

International uniformity

For this principle, the role of ILO (International Labour Organization) is noteworthy. It has produced a good number of International Conventions and Recommendations which covers the aspects like unemployment, general conditions of employment, wages, hours of work, young people, women, industrial health, etc.

National Economy

This principle states that, while enacting a labour legislation, the general economic situation of the country must be taken into consideration. Because in any country the state of national economy is a key factor in influencing labour legislation.

Social Security

From the point of view of, “Principles of Labour Legislation and Industrial Jurisprudence, Dr. Soumitra Kumar Chatterjee” is the concept of social security is an important part of social justice. It is based on ideas of human dignity and social justice. It essentially means that state must protect every citizen which in any way contributes to the promotion of the country’s welfare.

Its measures are significant from two viewpoints:

First, they constitute an important step towards the goal of a welfare state;

Second, they enable workers to become more efficient and hence increases the industrial power and potential.

Adoption of Social Security measures in India has been done through the implementation of Acts like:

• The Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923.
• The Trade Union Act, 1926.
• The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946.
• The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
• The Minimum Wages Act, 1948.
• The Employees State Insurance Act, 1948.
• The Factories Act, 1948.
• Maternity Benefits Act, 1961.

Growth of Labour Legislation in India

In the eighteenth-century, India was not just a great agricultural country but also a great manufacturing country. Both the European and Asian markets were mainly fed because of the looms supplied by India. British government in India, as a matter of policy discouraged Indian manufacturers, so that they could encourage new manufacturers of England. Their policy essentially was to make Indian people grow only the raw materials. The British oppression in India continued for some time, which led to the growth of Indian nationalism. 

In the twentieth century, the national movement took a new turn and hence there was a demand for Indian goods. A non-cooperation movement, which is known as Swadeshi movement, was started, which urged the people to use the goods which were made in India and to boycott the goods which were foreign- made. 

In India, the plantation industry in Assam was the first one to attract the legislation. Several new acts were passed from 1863 onwards for the regulation of recruitments. These legislations had more focus on the protection of interests of the employers rather than safeguarding the interest of the workers. Although, The Factories Act was passed in 1881 and the Mines Act was passed in 1901. But the most important Act which was passed to protect the interests of the workers was The Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923. Some of the other important social security legislations are: The Employees State Insurance Act, 1948, The employees Provident Funds Act, 1952 etc.

Laws were also made to regulate the labour management relations. Some of them are: The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. The Trade Unions Act, 1926, and The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946. Labour legislations ensuring labour welfare and minimum standards were also enacted. Some of them are: The Factories Act, 1948. The Minimum Wages Act, 1948. The Payment of Wages Act, 1936, and The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965.

Further, by the setting up of International Labour Organisation (ILO), India saw many revolutionary changes like the amendment in The Factories Act, 1881. All these amended and enacted legislations make provisions for both, general welfare and protection of interest of the labours in India. The positive influence of ILO was seen in the form of recognition of many new kinds of rights that were not available to the labour class but were made available post creation of ILO. It is important to note that until 1919, there were no important labour legislations in India, but with the establishment of ILO, there have been many changes in the labour legislation of our country.

The following are the main Acts enacted by the Central government for improving labour conditions.

S. No.	Name	Purpose
1.	Minimum Wages Act 1948	The Minimum Wages Act prescribes minimum wages for all employees.
2.	Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act 1946	The Industrial Employment Act requires employers in industrial establishments to clearly define the conditions of employment by issuing standing orders which are duly certified. These standing orders issued under the Act deals with holidays, shifts, payment of wages, leaves, termination etc.
3.	Payment of Wages Act 1936	Under the Payment of Wages Act 1936 there are certain common obligations of the employer such as: responsibility of the employer to make payments to the employees, duty of every employer to make timely payments, etc.
4.	Workmen’s Compensation Act 1923	The employer must pay compensation for an accident suffered by an employee during the course of employment and in accordance with the Act.
5.	Industrial Disputes Act 1947	The Industrial Disputes Act 1947 provides for the investigation and settlement of industrial disputes in an industrial establishment relating to lockouts, layoffs, retrenchment etc. It provides the machinery for the reconciliation and adjudication of disputes or differences between the employees and the employers.
6.	Maternity Benefit Act 1961	The Maternity Benefit Act essentially regulates the employment of women before and after childbirth and provides certain other benefits too.

The way Central government provides for labour laws, every state government also has certain typical and particular Acts which provides for labour laws in respect to the best interest of their culture and ethnicity, such as:

• Maharashtra Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Rules, 1971;
• Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963;
• Industrial disputes (Bombay) rules, 1957;
• The Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946;
• Maharashtra Workmen’s Minimum House Rent Allowance Act, 1986;
• Payment of Gratuity (Maharashtra) Rules, 1972;
• The Motor Transport Workers Gujarat Rules, 1965;
• Payment of Gratuity (Gujarat) Rules, 1976;
• Gujarat Payment of Wages Rules, 1963;
• Bombay Shops & Establishment Act, 1948;
• Gujarat Workmen’s Compensation Rules, 1967;
• Madhya Pradesh Factories Rules, 1962; etc.

Disciplinary proceedings

Let us look at some of the cases, so that we can get to have a better understanding of our topic:

West Bokaro Colliery (TISCO) Ltd. v Ram Pravesh Singh, (2008)

Facts of the Case:
Here the respondent who was a workman, was working as a Senior Dumper Operator under the Management of plaintiff. During his first shift in the company working hours, he left the place of his duty before time and went to Rajiv Nagar. In Rajiv Nagar, Shri Harbans kumar, Senior Officer (Security), and a number of security personnel along with other workers were discharging their duty, to prevent the unauthorized constructions on the Company’s land. The respondent along with few others, approached Shri Harbans Kumar and using abusive language, started shouting at him and threatened him with bad consequences if the unauthorized construction was demolished. Shri Harbans Kumar also got injured on their face and other parts of the body as the respondent had assaulted him with his hands and bricks.

Plaintiff issued a charge sheet against respondent whereby respondent was asked to show cause, why shouldn’t any disciplinary action be taken against him. The respondent denied all the allegations imposed on him. Hence, the management held an inquiry. The enquiry officer, concluded that the charges levelled against the respondent were established beyond reasonable doubt. Considering the report, the punishing authority recommended dismissal of workmen with immediate effect. Therefore he was dismissed.

The respondent raised an industrial dispute, which was referred to the tribunal for adjudication by the Ministry of Labour. The Industrial Tribunal got the order of dismissal passed against the respondent,set aside and ordered that he must be reinstated with 50% back wages.The Management then filed a Writ Petition before the High Court which was dismissed. Now the plaintiff, appealed before the Supreme Court.

Decision: The Supreme Court accepted the appeal. It set aside the order which was passed by the High Court and Labour Tribunal. It also held that the acquittal in a criminal case would not operate as a bar for drawing up of a disciplinary proceeding against a delinquent.

For further reference, kindly read the judgement here for better and full understanding.

Hombe Gowda Educational Trust v State of Karnataka

One Venkappa Gowda (now shall be referred to as the Respondent), was a lecturer in Kuvempu Mahavidyalaya, (Appellant No.2 herein). The said institution is under the management of the Appellant No.1. Private institutions in the State of Karnataka are governed by the Karnataka Private Educational Institutions Discipline and Control Act, 1975 (For further reference, read Pg. 143 of this document).

The Respondent here was alleged by the means of a disciplinary proceeding for assaulting the Principal of the Mahavidyalaya with a ‘chappal’. He was found guilty of the said charge and was hence dismissed from service.

An appeal was filed by Respondent before the Educational Appellate Tribunal. A preliminary issue framed, was whether the departmental proceedings held against the Respondent, was in agreement with the provisions of Rule 14(2) of CCS (CCA) Rules, or not. While deciding the preliminary issue, it was held that the departmental proceeding was invalid in law.

The Management, being aggrieved filed separate writ petitions before the Karnataka High Court. The High Court in its judgment essentially mentioned:

When the action of the petitioner in assaulting the Principal with chappal stands proved by the evidence of R.Ws. 1 to 5, whatever may be the provocation for such a conduct, the said conduct of the Petitioner is not justified no matter what. Therefore the Tribunal was fully justified in holding that the misconduct alleged against the Petitioner stands proved partly.

For further reference, kindly read the judgement here for better and full understanding.

Ramana v APSRTC, (2005)

The facts of this case are:

The plaintiff here, was working as a conductor in the organization of Andhra Pradesh State Road Transportation Corporation. Charges were made against him as he failed to collect fares and issue tickets to persons who were getting-off at their destinations and thus, not properly maintaining records of tickets and fare.

Explanation of the plaintiff was considered and was not found satisfactory and disciplinary proceedings were initiated. The Enquiry Officer found him guilty of the charges levelled and after giving him opportunity of hearing as regards the quantum of punishment, order of removal from service was passed.

For further reference, kindly read the judgement here for better and full understanding.

BHEL v M. Chandrasekhar Reddy, (2005)

Facts of the case are as follows: 

The defendant in this case, was an employee working as Assistant Grade-I in the stores department of the plaintiff, at Hyderabad. Defendant by depositing the title deeds of his properties as securities, borrowed house- building advance and hence created an equitable mortgage in favour of the plaintiff.

As per the terms of the mortgage deed, till the entire amount of the loan with interest was discharged, the title deed of the property belonging to the defendant was to be in custody of the plaintiff.

The plaintiff’s officers came to know that certain public notices were published in the local Newspaper which called upon the willing buyers for making their offers for the purchase of the property belonging to the defendant (which was mortgaged to the plaintiff by deposit of title deeds), while the mortgage was still subsisting and an amount of Rs. 1,34,951/- was due on the part of defendant.

When the plaintiff came to know about this, its officers approached the advocate who on behalf of the defendant had issued the publication. Then they came to know that the original title deeds which were supposed to be in deposit of the company was in his custody. It was stealthily taken away from the custody of the plaintiff. Based on these facts, a departmental enquiry was done. The reports submitted by the Enquiry Officer held the plaintiff guilty of the misconduct and taking into consideration the seriousness of the charge, the services of the defendant were terminated.

Being aggrieved by the said decision of the plaintiff, the defendant approached the Additional Labour Court, challenging the said enquiry report and the consequential punishment which was imposed on him. The Labour Court after considering the report of the Enquiry Officer and examining certain witnesses summoned by it said that the findings given by the Enquiry Officer and the confirmation of the said findings by the Disciplinary Authority was valid.

Being aggrieved by the said order, which directed the reinstatement of the defendant, the plaintiff filed a writ petition before the learned Single Judge, the defendant also being aggrieved by the order, filed a writ petition before the High Court. The learned Single Judge after hearing the parties dismissed both the writ petitions. The learned Single Judge said that, “There is any amount of spectrum of discretion vested with the Tribunal in taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of the case. The decision relied upon by the learned Counsel for the Management has to be taken into consideration based on the facts and circumstances of the case”.

On the above basis, writ petitions of the plaintiff and defendant were dismissed. Against the judgment which was given by the learned Single Judge, both the appellant and respondent then filed appeals before the Division Bench of the High Court which also dismissed the appeal.

For further reference, kindly read the judgement here for better and full understanding.

Narendra Nath Bhalla v State of U.P.

The appellant in this case was an employee and was working as a stamp clerk. On finding certain irregularities and misconduct, which are said to have been committed by him he was given suspension. A charge sheet was also issued to him; an inquiry officer was appointed who after completing the inquiry submitted a report holding that certain charges were proved against him. The disciplinary authority on consideration of that inquiry report which was submitted and the materials placed on record and looking to the charges held, proved agreed with the inquiry report and passed an order dismissing the appellant from the service. The appellant filed a claim petition, before the UP Public Services Tribunal, challenging the correctness and validity of the order of dismissal from service. The Tribunal dismissed the petition. He then, filed a writ petition before the High Court challenging the order which was passed by the UP services Tribunal. The Division Bench of the High Court, after considering the rival contentions, taking into account, the materials placed on record for consideration, dismissed the writ petition and hence affirmed the order passed by the Tribunal.

For further reference, kindly read the judgement here for better and full understanding.

Karnataka SRTC v A.T. Mane

The respondent in this case, was working as a conductor in the “Chikodi” depot of the plaintiff-corporation. One day, when the bus in which he was doing his duty returned back to the depot after getting done with its trip from Haragiri to Chikodi. A surprise check was conducted wherein, he was found to be in possession of unaccounted money of Rs.93/- which is even above the amount equivalent to the tickets issued by him. Under the rules applicable to the defendant, he was not supposed to carry more than Rs.5/- as his personal money, during the period of his duty. This rule was laid down in order to avoid the defence of the delinquent conductors, that the excess money was their personal money. Based on these facts, the plaintiff came to a conclusion that this excess amount of “Rs.93/-” was the amount collected by the defendant from the passengers, without issuing any tickets or issuing tickets of lower denomination as compared to what he was supposed to issue. On this investigation report, a departmental enquiry was instituted against the defendant. The defendant, was found guilty of the said charge. He was awarded punishment of dismissal of his services, by the disciplinary authority.

Being aggrieved by the said order, the defendant filed a claim before the Additional Labour Court, Hubli praying to set aside, the order of dismissal and for reinstatement in the services. The Labour Court after hearing both the parties concerned, concluded that the inquiry conducted by the management was completely fair.

However, it came to the conclusion that the only charge against the defendant was being in possession of Rs. 93/- which was in excess of the sale of tickets, but no presumption could be drawn that it was on amount received by non-issuance of tickets to passengers. It was held that the corporation ought to have examined the passengers whether from them, such amount was collected without issuing tickets or by issuing tickets of lesser denomination. Since, this was not done, the Labour Court concluded, that dismissal should not be given as it was highly disproportionate as compared to the smallness of the amount (Rs.93/-). Hence, it made an award, directing the reinstatement of the defendant with full back wages and continuity of service.

The aggrieved corporation hence filed a writ petition before the High Court of Karnataka. Learned single Judge, agreed with the decision of the Labour Court on the ground that the punishment awarded was excessive.However he reduced the back wages to 75% as compared to the full back wages earlier awarded by the Labour Court. Further an appeal was filed against the said judgment before the Division Bench of the High Court of Karnataka which came to be dismissed by the Division Bench.

For further reference, kindly read the judgement here for better and full understanding.

Criticism of Indian Labour Laws

There are many laws and Acts which are made by the Government, however their implementation is a big question. The answer to this rhetoric is obviously no. These laws are not at all implemented to the level they should be implemented. Especially in rural areas, these laws are not at all taken care of and there is no one to supervise if the law is being implemented at the ground level or not. Forget about the rural areas, these laws are being exploited even in the urban areas that too to a great extent. In modern day companies, firms, etc. we see corporate working staff burdened like anything, yet there is no one to stop it. In the name of human- rights, rights are merely limited to paper-work and not ground-work. Working people in companies of cities like Delhi, specially ones working in the corporate sector are mentally tortured by heavy work- load, over- time work hours etc. for which they are not even paid ! That’s truly a big irony for the government which is purely ignored by the government.

Economic survey 2005-2006 gives an account of how there are loopholes in the Indian Labour Laws, and how there is a lack of implementation of Indian Laws when it comes to the ground reality. All such aspects can be clearly seen from this report.

Second National Commission on Labour

If we talk about this report in the context of the article written by G. Shivaji Rao titled, “India: The Report Of The Second Indian National Labour Commission-2002: An Overview” we see that under the recommendations made, one of them states that the existing set of labour laws should be broadly grouped into five groups of laws, i.e. laws pertaining to:

Industrial relations, Wages, Social security, Safety, Welfare and working conditions, now it is clear that here merely these five groups are not enough. For example, the labour laws pertaining to factories do require all such above mentioned criteria but it further requires a lot more things which are not mentioned above, like machinery related laws, laws pertaining to human rights, rights pertaining to justice which somehow are operating at ground level, between an employee and his/her immediate head, which is missing if we classify strictly into these categories, the existing set of labour laws.

We often find that the employees’ working protocols are altered by their immediate heads and this causes the employees, various kinds of injury, which could be mental or emotional in nature, which is not seen, yet is there.

It’s true that these labour laws are “Too Inflexible”! “Not, flexible enough”! These laws are very strict in their nature and don’t change very easily. Another criticism for the labour laws is the “report on 47th Indian Labour Law Conference”, which has many points (outcomes) which are not appropriate as it’s a narrow interpretation of what is required for the ground level implementation to be made effective. There needs to be a broad look for the outcomes of such reports which covers a multitude of things and not just a small amount of things.

Conclusion

There are many laws and Acts which are made by the Government, however their implementation is a big question. These laws are not at all implemented to the level they should be implemented. Especially in rural areas, these laws are not at all taken care of and there is no one to supervise if the law is being implemented at the ground level or not. Forget about the rural areas, these laws are being exploited even in the urban areas that too to a great extent. In modern day companies, firms, etc. we see corporate working staff burdened like anything, yet there is no one to stop it. In the name of human- rights, rights are merely limited to paper- work and not ground- work. Working people in companies of cities like Delhi, especially ones working in the corporate sector are mentally tortured by heavy work- load, over- time work hours etc. for which they are not even paid! That’s truly a big irony for the government which is purely ignored by the government.

Yet it is important to note that these laws define labour conditions to a major extent and does wonders to labour conditions. They make labour conditions, wonderful to a major extent. Employees have at least something to rely upon and hence some standing in the court of law based on the existing laws, which is a wonderful thing as if these things weren’t there, all employees would have been exploited beyond imagination (in the name of money). These laws help in giving structure to the labour conditions which are prevalent in India. Hence it protects equity and good conscience along with the betterment of people.

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