Introduction to Industrial RelationsIndustrial relations has become one of the most delicate and complex problems of modern industrial society. Industrial progress is impossible without cooperation of labors and harmonious relationships. Therefore, it is in the interest of all to create and maintain good relations between employees (labor) and employers (management).

Concept of Industrial Relations:

The term ‘Industrial Relations’ comprises of two terms: ‘Industry’ and ‘Relations’. “Industry” refers to “any productive activity in which an individual (or a group of individuals) is (are) engaged”. By “relations” we mean “the relationships that exist within the industry between the employer and his workmen.” The term industrial relations explains the relationship between employees and management which stem directly or indirectly from union-employer relationship.

Industrial relations are the relationships between employees and employers within the organizational settings. The field of industrial relations looks at the relationship between management and workers, particularly groups of workers represented by a union. Industrial relations are basically the interactions between employers, employees and the government, and the institutions and associations through which such interactions are mediated.

The term industrial relations has a broad as well as a narrow outlook. Originally, industrial relations was broadly defined to include the relationships and interactions between employers and employees. From this perspective, industrial relations covers all aspects of the employment relationship, including human resource management, employee relations, and union-management (or labor) relations. Now its meaning has become more specific and restricted. Accordingly, industrial relations pertains to the study and practice of collective bargaining, trade unionism, and labor-management relations, while human resource management is a separate, largely distinct field that deals with nonunion employment relationships and the personnel practices and policies of employers.

The relationships which arise at and out of the workplace generally include the relationships between individual workers, the relationships between workers and their employer, the relationships between employers, the relationships employers and workers have with the organizations formed to promote their respective interests, and the relations between those organizations, at all levels. industrial relations also includes the processes through which these relationships are expressed (such as, collective bargaining, workers’ participation in decision-making, and grievance and dispute settlement), and the management of conflict between employers, workers and trade unions, when it arises.

Definitions of Industrial Relations

The simplest way to explore a subject is to start by looking at ways in which it has been defined..

• The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines industrial relations as “the dealings or relationships of a usually large business or industrial enterprise with its own workers, with labour in

general, with governmental agencies, or with the public”. This definition appears to point to relationships from the perspective of an organization and limits it to an industrial or business organization. It suggests a descriptive point of view relating to an entire range of relationships that an industrial organization may have with the stakeholders, including its employees. Does the inclusion of only industrial organizations in the definition mean that the central government employees protesting the anomalies in the Pay Commission report is not a subject matter of industrial relations? If we expand the scope here to include all organizations, should not a term such as employee relations be more appropriate?

• The Encyclopaedia Britannica2 defines industrial relations as the “study of human behaviour in the workplace, focusing especially on the influence such relations have on an organization's productivity”. This simple definition points to the existence of only two players operating in the industry and narrows down the scope from the previous definition to only relationships between employer and employees. It does not include anything about the dynamics and context of the relationship. The simplicity of the definition leaves out vital players and processes of the IR.

• Dale Yoder, in his definition, worked on the above premise but focused on issues emanating out of employment, describing “industrial relationship to be the designation of a whole field of relationships which exist because of the necessary collaboration of men and women in the employment process of an industry”3. Industrial relations describe the “relationship between managements, employees or among employees and their organizations that characterize or grow out of employment”. Here, the emphases are on all kinds of relationships that come into existence because of employment. By implication, trade unions, employers' associations, State regulation and their impact on and from the basic employer–employee relationship would all get included in the definition.

IR Is

• A study of the relationship between employers and employees• At an organization, industry or a nation level

• State's role

• Societal, economic, political and technological forces as context

• It includes:

o players, their objectives

o structures

o conflicts (origins and resolutions)

o contexts and their impact

o processes and their outcomes.

A Working Definition

From all the above definitions, we may try to piece together a working definition for ourselves. Our working definition must take the following into account:

• IR is about relationships.• The origin is in the relationship of employment.

• Employer–employee relationship pertains to all kinds of organizations.

Figure 1.1 Industrial relations—a pictorial representation.

• There are actors other than the employer and the employees who influence the relationship.• The relationships are shaped by the actors, structures, rules, law, technology, etc.

• The impact of social, economic, political and technological features of the context on the shaping of these relationships.

Industrial relations, therefore, at its core, is a discipline, that concerns itself with the study of the relationship between employers and employees at an organization, industry or a nation level. It also concerns itself with the two-way interaction that the State may have in influencing the relationship(s). These relationships are shaped in a larger context of societal, economic, political and technological forces that are in existence. The study encompasses the players and their objectives, the structures and their functions, the conflicts and their origins and resolutions, the contexts and their impact, the “processes” and their outcomes.

Figure 1.1 is a visual representation of our working definition. While this may not be a rigorous definition of a social scientist, it does capture the essence for a student or a practising manager. At this stage, keep the visual representation of the definition in mind. We will explore it further in the later part of the text.

The Scope of Industrial Relations

Different definitions of industrial relations provide different perspectives from which the term IR has been looked at. The scope of IR, therefore, should encompass an examination of these perspectives. The scope of industrial relations would include:

• Relations between employee groups/association or unions and management, management and the government, unions and government, or between employers and unorganized employees. It would also include collective relations among trade unions, employers' associations and the government.

• The activities relating to the above relationship would entail:

o Structuring of labour-management relations and its regulation

o Labour legislative compliance

o Negotiating work-related contracts

Key Elements in IR

• Relations existing in industry• Relations between:

o unions and management

o unions themselves, management and the government, and unions and government

o employers and employees

• conflicts in relationship

• regulation by the State