Trade Union

Definition: Trade Union is also referred as Labour Union, indicating an organized union, i.e. association of the labours, employed in a trade, industry, business or factory, etc who come together to achieve common goals, i.e. improving bargaining power on wages and working conditions.

Basically, trade unions are the legal representatives of the group of wage earners. They operate at the plant level, firm-level, industry level, regional level or national level.

Objectives of Trade Union

On behalf of the workers, it is the Trade Union which by way of its leadership, bargains and negotiates labour contracts with the employers. The objectives of the Labour/Trade Union are:

• To represent the individual workers, when they face a problem at work.
• To negotiate with the management about the issues which affect the workmen of the organization. The trade union also work for reducing the difference in opinion amidst management and union members.
• To safeguard the interest of the workers, by intervening in the improper implementation of the personnel policies which can directly or indirectly affect the workmen, such as layoff, retrenchment, promotion or transfer.
• To provide a range of services to the employees such as education and training, legal assistance, financial discounts and welfare benefits.
• To protect the health of the workmen, by demanding proper working conditions like lighting and ventilation, minimum working hours, paid leaves, drinking water, refreshments, sanitation, restrooms, social security benefits, safety equipment while discharging hazardous duty.
• To maintain harmonious relations between employee and employer.

The union is set up by the workers of the concerned field, which works for promoting the interest of all the members (workers). Its aim is to protect the right of the working class, as well as to stop their exploitation by large corporates.

The union deals with the basic problems encountered by the workers at their workplace such as fair pay, overtime, discrimination, working hours, unfair labour practices, holidays, so on and so forth.

Functions of Trade Union

The functions performed by trade unions are mainly divided into two groups:

Militant Functions

As the name suggests, these are aggressive functions. And so trade unions undertake those activities which result in the upliftment of the position of the workers with respect to the employment. The main objective of such activities is –  Adequate wages, Improved working conditions and fair and right treatment.

So, if the union fail to achieve these objectives, using methods like collective bargaining or negotiation, then they take recourse of another approach and raise their voice against management by using other techniques such as go-slow tactics, strike, boycott, gherao, and so on. Hence the militant functions involve:

• Achieving higher wages and good working conditions
• Raising the worker’s status
• Protecting labours against exploitation and injustice.

Fraternal Functions

Fraternal functions involve friendly activities undertaken by the trade unions with an aim of providing help to its member, whenever they need and improving their level of efficiency. The trade unions work for cultivating a spirit of cooperation in members and encourage healthy industrial relations.

Further, they also work for spreading education among the members. Fraternal functions rely primarily on the availability of funds. Funds are generated by subscription from members and donations. So, these functions involve:

• Taking up welfare activities to boost the morale of labours
• Developing self-confidence in workers.
• Promoting sincerity, cooperation and discipline among workers.

The function of such unions is to ascertain the grievances of the workforce and collectively represent them before the company’s management. In this way, the trade union, works as a bridge between workers and management, for communication. Not just this, the unions are also accountable for maintaining discipline and unity among workers.

The presence of trade unions is also important for maintaining good relations between workers and management. They also take necessary actions on the misconduct or disobedience of workers, which disturbs the peace and harmony.