Evolution of the Labour Movement in India

Abstract

Labour unions are, of course, the most important organisations in this process, but given the heterogeneity of the labour force and its vast number, these organizations have been able to mobilise only a small section. There are other means, such as political parties, non-government organisations, and other types of grassroots organisations, involved in this endeavour. The earnings of the workers in the two sectors differed considerably. Though the organised sector employed only 8 per cent of the total labour force, the workers collectively earned around 33 per cent of the country's total wages and incomes. The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), formed on October 31, 1920, was the first national federation of trade unions. The unorganised sector comprises two types of workers, namely, self-employed and casual wage earners. The self-employed are those who earn paltry incomes through their own assets. The most striking trend in the trade union movement before and after Independence is that in the earlier period, there was a tendency towards unity, while in the latter period, splits became the order of the day. The formation of the INTUC marked the first step of the state in controlling the labour movement. The movement became too dependent on the state for protective legislation, its implementation, and even for solving industrial disputes. Moreover, in the case of India, there is enough evidence to show that in the case of major industrial disputes, the state rarely sided with the workers. In 1952, the Bharatiya Jan Sangh, a political party having a Hindu fundamentalist background, was formed, and in 1955, it initiated another trade union centre known as Bharatiya Mazdur Sangh. Apart from the working class being divided on lines of political parties at the national level, regional parties too started forming their own trade union centres since the late 1960s. The Registrar of Trade Unions is expected to maintain records of union membership based on the returns submitted by the registered unions. Every major trade union in the country has stressed this; yet, there seems to be no signs of its emergence.