Industrial Disputes Act 1947

The Industrial Disputes Act 1947
An Act to make provision for the investigation and settlement of industrial disputes, and for certain other purposes.
Citation	Act No. 14 of 1947
Enacted by	Central Legislative Assembly
Date enacted	11 March 1947
Date assented to	11 March 1947
Date commenced	1 April 1947

The Industrial Disputes Act 1947 extends to the whole of India and regulates Indian labour law so far as that concerns trade unions as well as Individual workman employed in any Industry within the territory of Indian mainland. It came into force April 1, 1947.

The objective of the Industrial Disputes Act is to secure industrial peace and harmony by providing machinery and procedure for the investigation and settlement of industrial disputes by conciliation, arbitration and adjudication machinery which is provided under the statute. The main and ultimate objective of this act is "Maintenance of Peaceful work culture in the Industry in India" which is clearly provided under the Statement of Objects & Reasons of the statute.

The laws apply only to the organised sector. Chapter V talks about the most important and often in news topic of 'Strikes and Lockouts'. It talks about the Regulation of strikes and lockouts and the proper procedure which is to be followed to make it a Legal instrument of 'Economic Coercion' either by the Employer or by the Workmen. Chapter V-B, introduced by an amendment in 1976, requires firms employing 300 or more workers to obtain government permission for layoffs, retrenchments and closures. A further amendment in 1982 (which took effect in 1984) expanded its ambit by reducing the threshold to 100 workers.

The Act also lays down:

The Industrial Disputes Act extends to whole of India and applies to every Industry and its various industrial establishment carrying on any business, trade, manufacture or distribution of goods and services irrespective of the number of workmen employed therein.

Every person employed in an establishment for hire or reward including contract labour, apprentices and part-time employees to do any manual, clerical, skilled, unskilled, technical, operational or supervisory work, is covered by the Act.

This Act though does not apply to persons mainly in managerial or administrative capacity, persons engaged in a supervisory capacity and drawing > 10,000 p.m or executing managerial functions and persons subject to Army Act, Air Force and Navy Act or those in police service or officer or employee of a prison.

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