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Unfair Labour Practices

Unfair Labour Practices (ULPs) refer to any action or omission by an employer, an employer's trade union, a workman, or a workman's trade union that violates the principles of good faith, fairness, and industrial harmony, as prohibited by law.

In India, the definition and classification of ULPs were introduced by the Industrial Disputes (Amendment) Act, 1982, and are defined in Section 2(ra) read with the Fifth Schedule of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (ID Act).

1. Statutory Definition and Legal Prohibition

A. Definition

Section 2(ra) defines "Unfair Labour Practice" as:

"Any of the practices specified in the Fifth Schedule."

The law makes no attempt at a general definition but lists specific, prohibited actions under the Fifth Schedule. The list is comprehensive and is categorized into practices committed by employers and those committed by workmen/unions.

B. Legal Prohibition (Section 25-T)

Section 25-T strictly prohibits any employer or workman, or their respective trade unions, from engaging in any ULP. This section provides the legal basis for restraining and punishing such acts.

2. Unfair Labour Practices by Employers (Fifth Schedule, Part I)

ULPs committed by the employer primarily aim to undermine the workers' fundamental rights to organize, join a union, and bargain collectively.

A. Practices Related to Trade Unions and Organization

These acts involve interference or discrimination against union activities:

  • Interference and Coercion: Threatening workmen with discharge or dismissal if they join or promote a trade union.

  • Domination and Support: Taking an active interest in organizing or financing a union controlled by the employer (often called "yellow dog unions").

  • Discrimination: Discharging, punishing, or refusing to promote a workman solely on account of their trade union activities.

  • Refusal to Bargain: Refusing to bargain collectively in good faith with the recognized trade union representatives.

B. Practices Related to Service Conditions and Victimization

These acts use managerial powers in a malicious or unfair way:

  • Victimization: Discharging or dismissing workmen by way of victimization, or for false reasons (e.g., falsely implicating a workman in a criminal case).

  • Colorable Exercise of Rights: Dismissing workmen not in good faith, but in the colorable exercise(disguise) of the employer's management rights (e.g., dismissing an active union member for a minor technical fault with undue haste).

  • Sham Contracts: Employing workmen as "badlis" (substitutes), casuals, or temporaries for years with the sole object of depriving them of the status and benefits (wages, job security, retrenchment compensation) of permanent workmen.

    • Case Law: Courts have consistently treated the practice of continuing temporary employees for years in jobs of a permanent nature as a clear ULP.

  • Abolition of Work: Abolishing work of a regular nature and handing it over to contractors as a measure of breaking a legal strike.

  • Lockouts: Proposing or continuing a lock-out deemed to be illegal under the Act.

3. Unfair Labour Practices by Workmen and Unions (Fifth Schedule, Part II)

The Act also lists specific practices prohibited for workmen and their trade unions, primarily focusing on violence, intimidation, and abuse of industrial action.

  • Illegal Strikes and Slowdown: Advising, supporting, or instigating any strike deemed illegal under the ID Act. This includes "go-slow" (willful reduction in output), squatting on the work premises, or gherao(physical surrounding) of the managerial staff.

  • Coercion against Non-Members: Coercing workmen through force, violence, or threats of intimidation to join a union or refrain from attending work during a strike.

  • Damage to Property: Inciting or indulging in willful damage to the employer's property connected with the industry.

  • Refusal to Bargain: For a recognized union to refuse to bargain collectively in good faith with the employer (this duty is mutual).

4. Penalties and Remedies

The ID Act provides penalties to deter ULPs and remedies to restore the rights of the aggrieved party.

A. Penalty (Section 25-U)

Any person who commits any Unfair Labour Practice is punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with a fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.

B. Remedies Available to Workman

When a ULP is proven before a Labour Court or Industrial Tribunal, the worker is entitled to several remedies:

  1. Reinstatement: The primary remedy for wrongful dismissal or termination is an order directing the employer to reinstate the workman to their former position.

  2. Back Wages/Compensation: The court often awards back wages (salary for the period of unemployment) and may grant compensation if reinstatement is deemed unfeasible or impractical.

  3. Cease and Desist Order: The Tribunal may direct the offending party (employer or union) to cease and desist from continuing the unfair practice.

The inclusion of ULPs in the ID Act ensures that the relationship between employers and employees is governed by principles of equity, justice, and the constitutional philosophy of the welfare of the working class.

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