1.1. CASE STUDY Mohanlal Yadav, an engineer with experience from Rohtaj Industries, founded The Dish Ends Ltd. in 1975 on Thane-Belapur Road in Navi Mumbai. The management was formed by four engineers, including Yadav. It was manufacturing martensitic (MS) and stainless steel (SS) vessels required for pharmaceuticals, chemical companies, fertilizer companies, large government and private enterprises like Hindustan Organic Chemicals Ltd., Nocil, Herdillia Chemicals and Standard Alkali, and other dairy and pharmacy companies. The company was also manufacturing dish ends required for diesel petrol tankers. It was a quality product for which highly skilled employees, supervisors and engineers were employed. The total strength of the company was more than 500 workers. The company was working in three shifts. It was headed by well-qualified top management. In 1978, workers formed a union under the leadership of S. R. Kanitkar, who was the leader of workers of chemical and pharmaceutical companies in the Thane belt. His asset was that he was an advocate dealing with cases on industrial disputes. Ramesh, who was a turner in the company, along with a few local workers took lead and met Kanitkar, and under his leadership, they formed a union for the workers of Dish Ends Ltd. They registered this union under the heading of Dish Ends Employees Union and submitted a letter to the company under the presidentship of Kanitkar. Most of the workers joined this union and called it General Chemical Workers Union. They informed the management that the union wanted to negotiate the demands of the workers. The matter was not taken up seriously by the management, and it lingered until 1980. In the meantime, S. K. Jadhav, a widely experienced personnel manager having a good understanding of the complexity of industrial relations, joined the company as its first personnel manager. Due to financial crisis, the company was not in a position to consider the demands of the workers, and this was informed to the union unit committee several times. During meetings with the unit committee, it was observed by the management that the committee was not cooperative and was adamant during negotiations. The union had put up a charter of demands with 25 items. Its major demand was a pay rise of Rs. 1,500 per month for all the workers in their basic salary and dearness allowance. Other demands were related to increase in incentives, bonus, uniforms, increase in LTA, free transportation, education allowance, HRA etc. During the meetings, the management tried to convince the committee members by explaining the financial constraints of the company. The leadership was from the local area, and no one was able to understand the total financial implications against the demands that were placed before the management. The workers were getting impatient, as only the negotiations were going on and the issues were prolonged.

2 In December 1979, Ramesh, with the help of political parties, started pressurizing the management to fulfil their demands as per their charter of demands. The management called a meeting with the president of the union, Kanitkar, wherein they tried to explain to him the company's financial crisis and requested to maintain peace in the company as workers were unnecessarily creating unrest without understanding the management's problems. During the meeting, Kanitkar advised the committee members to maintain peace in the company so that negotiations could proceed further. Ramesh and the other committee members did not say anything and left the meeting. Both the management and the trade union leaders were unhappy with the attitude of the committee members. In January 1980, labour unrest gradually increased, and the workmen became non-cooperative because of instigation from the committee members. They started threatening the supervisors, which adversely affected production activities. One of the supervisors of the second shift, Shashi Nair, was abused and threatened by Ramesh in relation to the pending demands. Nair tried to convince him and requested him not to become violent. Without listening to him, Ramesh slapped Nair in the presence of the workmen who were on duty in the second shift on 10 January 1980. Nair reported this matter to the management in writing the next morning. On the same day, i.e. 11 January 1980, Personnel Manager S. K. Jadhav went to Thane Police Station along with a letter detailing the factory matters to be informed to the assistant commissioner of police (ACP) of Thane. After returning from Thane, as he was walking towards the factory premises, near the company gate, Jadhav was attacked by Ramesh along with seven or eight committee members. This was witnessed by the security officer and he called the chairman and one of the directors from the office. Meanwhile, the attackers ran away from that place. With the help of the chairman and the director, Jadhav was treated in a private hospital in Vashi. Along with the medical report, a complaint was lodged by Jadhav with Turbhe Police Station. All the accused were arrested by the police and were given custody for three days thereafter. When Ramesh was relieved from police custody, he approached Dr. Sawant's union known as 'Mazdoor Congress of Engineering Workers' located at Ghatkopar station. He met Dr. Sawant and requested him to represent on behalf of the workers of Dish Ends Ltd. Dr. Sawant advised him to enrol all the workers of the company as members of his union and, after the collection of membership fees, to stop the work in the company and then to approach him for further action to be taken by the union. At the same time, he discussed with Ramesh the details of general demands pending before the management. After two days, Ramesh brought a letter from Dr. Sawant with the same demands that they had put before the management through Kanitkar's union, and in the letter, it was demanded that their demands be settled within eight days from the receipt of the demand letter of the union or otherwise the workers would take the law into their hands and responsibility of the consequences would remain with the management. After receiving this letter, the management decided to take disciplinary action against Ramesh for assaulting the personnel manager, and accordingly on 15 January 1980, Ramesh and eight other committee members were suspended pending inquiry. The suspension letter was issued to him at

3 the company's gate by the security officer. The company's gate was opened on 16 January 1980 as usual. Some of the workmen who tried to enter the factory for their regular work were obstructed by Ramesh and other committee members and were not allowed to go inside the factory. Somehow the staff members and the management employees went inside the factory premises, and some of the sincere and faithful workmen who were in the first shift also went inside the factory by force. Nearly 35 casual workers were also not allowed to go inside the factory premises for work. Ramesh gathered the other workers, including casual workers, and informed them that they had brought in Dr. Sawant's union and he has instructed to stop the work in the company completely, and that further steps would be taken by the union regarding their general demands. Further it was observed by the management that most of the skilled and sincere workers wanted to cooperate with the management and not accept the membership of the union of Dr. Sawant, and that they had signed as members of Dr. Sawant's union because of the threats and the pressure from local leaders. After getting feedback from the majority of management staff and workmen, charge sheets were issued to Ramesh and eight committee members, and they were called for domestic inquiry as per the rules. The charge sheets were related to violence inside the factory premises, assault on the people in the management, declaration of illegal strike etc. The inquiries were arranged outside the factory premises in order to conduct them peacefully. The situation in the factory was that faithful workers were frightened because of the threat by the union and the committee members. The majority of workers who were willing to continue production demanded police protection, to which the management also agreed. After looking at the gravity of the situation at the factory, Prakash Pawar, ACP, Thane, took initiative and visited the factory. He promised the management and the workmen who were present in the factory to provide police protection within and outside the factory premises and while travelling by bus from Mumbai to the factory and back. The company worked two months more with police protection, and moral support was given to the workmen and the staff members by the management and police authorities. Meanwhile, a complaint was lodged by the management in the labour court of Thane to declare the strike as illegal and no wages for days of strike. The strike was declared illegal by the labour court, and the union and the workmen were advised to restore the situation and join work unconditionally. Meanwhile, after two to three months, all the inquiries were completed by the management ex parte, and the decision taken by the management was the dismissal of Ramesh along with eight committee members based on the findings of the inquiry officer. The management of the company removed all the 35 casual workers who did not report for duty for more than three months. This information reached all the workmen of the company and all the nearby villages. This was shocking news in that area. Meanwhile, a local leader of Shiv Sena, Kishor Salvi, met Jadhav and told him that majority of the workmen had requested him to protect their services and their lives from Dr. Sawant and local committee members, who were dismissed from the services of the company; hence he wanted to represent the workmen and to cooperate with the management to run the company smoothly as it was a question of bread and butter for the local workmen as well as of the survival of the company. Salvi also met the chairman of the company, Mohanlal Yadav, and promised

4 him accordingly. Thereafter, he formed a committee of 11 new unit members and sent an introductory letter to the company in the name of Shramik Sena Union. After the entry of Shramik Sena, Dr. Sawant's union members were causing trouble for the faithful workmen and the management staff. On the request of Kishor Salvi, the management recruited 35 new casual workers based on the 'sons of the soil' policy. Later, this was informed to the labour department of the Government of Maharashtra. The company also got the sympathy of the Government of Maharashtra. Meanwhile, Shramik Sena made an application in the industrial court of Thane for its recognition under the MRTU and PULP Act, 1971. The application of Dr. Sawant's union in relation to the illegal removal of Ramesh and other casual workers, pending before the labour court and the industrial court, was dismissed in due course. After a period of one year or so, Kishor Salvi's Shramik Sena received a certificate of recognition from Dish Ends Ltd., and then the issue was settled by accepting 20 out of the 25 original demands of the workers. 1.2. QUESTIONS 1. Summarize the industrial relation and industrial unrest of Rohtaj Industries ltd. 2. Give a suitable name to the present case. 3. Explain the role of Mohanlal Yadav creating industrial relation. 4. What were the reasons for the industrial unrest in the company & its solution? 5. Was the dismissal of the trade union leader and the committee members justified? 6. What is your response to the removal of 35 casual workers? Give the details of it. 7. What is the legal position regarding casual workers in the recognition of trade unions?