Trade Union Movement & Market Economy

The trade union movement in India started with the forming of Bombay Mill Hands Association in 1890 by N.K. Lokhands. In later stage several associations formed at the beginning of the trade union movement. The factors behind trade union movements were economic hardship due to rise in cost of living, rising tide of nationalism, emergence of union, unemployment, worker’s insecurity etc. The workers were paid less employer sacked them on his will. No laws were there to protect the rights of the working class. 

The main aims of the trade unions were to promote welfare activities and spread literacy among workers. The leadership to these unions was provided mostly by social reformers, careerists and politicians-cum nationalists. Today, there are several trade unions like Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), Bharatiya Majdoor Sangh (BMS), which are mostly spread in large scale industry or in government establishments.

Since the globalization, Indian economic scenario has been changed exponentially. Service sectors have surpassed the manufacturing sector in contribution to the Indian economy. There are various new sectors like Information Technology, transport, education, health, banking, insurance, which have make remarkable growth and provide opportunity to thousands of young people to make their carrier. The level of living, educational and health has been improved. Wages and allowances are improved. Government has also amended labour laws to make them more favourable to employers. It has changed the objectives of the trade unions from labour welfare to bargain for wages and allowances.

There is tough competition not among the employees only but also within companies. Free flow of trade with developed nation, and cheap import from cheap labour countries like China, Indian industries are stressing on productivity of the worker by providing them opportunity for upgradation of their skill and working more than 8 hours. Industries and public sector do not allow strikes by their employees and they take stern action if an employee goes to strike. 

Future of Trade Union Movement in India:

Trade unions are concentrated more or less in major metropolitan cities in India and traceable only in large scale units. As small scale units are making fast growth, hence base of trade unions is shrinking with time. Trade unions have low membership as private industries prevent them being a member of any trade union. Trade unions are suffering from lack of adequate funds, services of experts and unable to bargain with employers. Their financial status is weak. Professional political leaders of trade unions exploit the workers for their political purposes and branded their personal prestige for own political purposes. These all factors are coupling to loose the effectiveness of the Trade Unions of the country.

There exists several unions in different industries and they have their own agenda and backed by different political fraction of the country. They are engaged in rivalry among themselves. Due to low membership, some unions are hardly recognized. Many unions in India undertake only limited welfare activities. Unions stress on strike for wages and allowances only worker’s or public welfares are ignored. Therefore, strike and dharana are not backed by general public as it affects education, health, transport and administrative works of general public hugely.

Awareness and social responsibility have given opportunity to a worker to make progress by working hard and developing skills rather than strike or dharana. Privatisation of government sector looses the scope of the trade unions. Except the trade union of Railway, other trade unions have membership less than one lakhs. Trade unions are loosing their ground, public support as well as their effectiveness as their new members and general public are now more educated, awared and good background. They are now questioning the objectives and agendas of trade unions rather than following them blindly. For example, recently, bank unions and hospital owners’ association went on strike on some points with government. Objectives of the both strikes were intensively questioned by the general public as employees of banks and hospital owner belongs to upper or middle class of the Indian society.

The objective of the trade unions should be changed in accordance with change in the today’s economy. The political interference should be eliminated and these trade unions should be governed by professional leaders. Trade unions should garner the favour of their members and public’s support otherwise with time they shall struggle with their existence. It is not true that all unions are stagnant in nature, some have adopted dynamic approach as seen in the Department of Post (India Post) where department has extended its working prospective from postal centric to multidimentional approach like postal insurance, postal payment banks, e-commerce etc