Meaning Of Collective Bargaining:

The Term Collective bargaining was coined by Sydney and Beatrice Webb in 1891, it means collective negotiation between the employer and the employee. Bargaining is done on wages, leave, working hours, and health safety policies. Collective bargaining is done relating to their work situation. In a simple sense Collective Bargaining is the way to solve workplace problems and it is also the best means of raising wages in many countries.

Objectives Of Collective Bargaining:

• It promotes a democratic approach to solving work-related problems.
• It provides for better employer & employee relationships.
• It helps to arrive at a mutually beneficial settlement.
• It prevents unilateral action on the part of the management.
• It avoids the need for a third-party intervention to find a solution.

Characteristics of Collective Bargaining:

• It is a group activity.
• It is mutual.
• It is a voluntary process.
• It is complementary in nature.
• It is a democratic process.

Kinds (Methods) of Collective Bargaining:

The following types of collective bargaining take place in the following three methods:

• Negotiation: It is the process of settling the differences face-to-face in round table talks between the representatives of the employees and employers.
• Mediation: When mutual discussions and understanding fail in negotiations, a third-party mediator is brought in to help resolve labour disputes. The mediator does not serve as a judge but instead assists the employer and employees in reaching an agreement by encouraging them to continue their negotiations.
• Arbitration (voluntary or compulsory): In simple terms, the submission by two or more parties of their dispute to the decision of a third person called the arbitrator who decides the disputes judicially.

Major Problems Of Collective Bargaining:

• Inter-union rivalries hinder the process of collective bargaining between the labour and the management. There is a lack of procedures.
• The trade union movement has leaned towards political orientation rather than collective bargaining.
• The major emphasis on both unions and employees is to settle the disputes through adjudication rather than sorting out issues among themselves.
• Whatever bargaining takes place is limited to large organisations only; smaller organizations do not prefer this form of handling issues.
• The multiplicity of unions that are weak and unstable and do not represent the majority of the employees.

Factors Affecting Collective Bargaining:

• Weak Unions.
• Inadequate Intervention.
• Competitive Process.
• Multiple Unions.
• Non-Recognition.

Agreements are prevalent for collective bargaining in India:

• Bipartite Agreement: These agreements usually result in voluntary negotiations between the employer and employees and are usually binding per section 18 of the Industrial Dispute Act.
• Settlements: Settlements usually arise out of the conciliation process and they are usually tripartite as they involve three parties which are the employer, employee, and conciliation officer.
• Consent Awards: When the parties reach an agreement while the dispute between them is pending before the adjudicatory body, such agreements are incorporated in the authority's award and are binding on the parties under the dispute.

Written By: K.Keerthana - BA, LLB hons, LLM.