Category: Industrial Relations
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STATUS OF GIG ECONOMY WORKERS: AN ANALYSIS OF US, UK AND INDIAN LAWS
by Syed Alwaz Asif, Second year law student at Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknow. Introduction Digital labour platforms are emerging as important sources of employment in the 21st century. These platforms have provided income generating opportunities to multiple sections of society. Along with the opportunities these platforms have provided, they have also given rise to…
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GIG WORKERS V. PLATFORM-BASED-COMPANIES : ARE NEGOTIATING COUNCILS/UNIONS A SOLUTION?
by Ishaan Mundeja, a 3rd year student at Symbiosis Law School Introduction Platform businesses have attracted popularity and grown over the years and this growth has been accompanied by several protests especially by those who are engaged with these platforms in ensuring delivery. In India, there have been protests by delivery personnel over remuneration and…
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APPLICABILITY OF THE LIMITATION ACT ON INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES – A MATCH MADE BY THE COURTS OF JUSTICE?
INTRODUCTION Equity warrants that the law denies protection to litigants who silently acquiesce to the unlawful encroachment of their rights. However, in a conflict between unequals should such a doctrine of laches be strictly applicable, considering the stark power asymmetry? The Supreme Court (‘SC’) in the case of Assistant Engineer, Rajasthan State Agriculture Marketing Board,…
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TRADE UNION AND AMAZON: A COMMON CONUNDRUM BETWEEN UNION AND CORPORATE BODIES
Introduction The press, the public, and the labor movement expressed worry about Amazon’s frenzied work speed, irrational corporate culture, and appalling working conditions at the end of 2017. Since 2001, the continuing labor dispute between the United Services Union and the mail-order behemoth Amazon has been creating noticeable sparks all around the world. Recently, a…
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CONUNDRUM OF GOVERNMENT HOSPITALS UNDER INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS CODE, 2020: INDUSTRY OR NOT?
Introduction On 28th September 2020, four new labour law codes were introduced by the Central Government which dealt with the subject matter of industrial relations, social security, occupational health, safety and working conditions as well as wages of the employees. Under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, (hereinafter, “IR Code”) three major legislations, i.e., Industrial Disputes…
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CAN THE NEW SOCIAL SECURITY CODE OF 2020 HELP SOLVE THE SWIGGY-ZOMATO LABOUR LAW CRISIS?
A recent tweet criticizing the popular food delivery app ‘Swiggy’, by describing how the company gets away with mistreating its delivery people has sparked outrage. This is not the first time that Swiggy and similar apps have come under fire for mistreating their employees, and if the existing legal frameworks are not altered, it will…
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RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS THROUGH THE CURRENT OUTLOOK OF THE INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS CODE, 2020
PREMISE The Government of India adopted the new Industrial Relations Code, 2020 (hereinafter in short as “IRC”) on September 28th, 2020, in order to modernise the country’s existing labour and employment legislation. The IRC annuls three key labour acts namely: the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (hereinafter in short as “ID Act”), Trade Unions Act, 1926,…
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LOKMAT NEWSPAPERS PVT. LTD. V/S SHANKAR PRASAD IN THE TIME OF THE INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS CODE, 2020: A GOOD OR A BAD PRECEDENT?
Introduction The concept of precedents has its origin in the English Common Law. Salmond defines it as the part of a judicial decision having a legal authority, also called as ratio decidendi. The significance of law of precedent is to establish uniformity and consistency in decision-making and ensure equality in treatment. Recently, the Industrial Relations…
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RESIGNATIONS AND THE DEFENCE OF FINANCIAL CRUNCH – ATTENTION, GOVERNMENT COMPANIES
On 1 June 2021, the Delhi High Court (“Delhi HC”), in the case of Arjun Ahluwalia vs Air India Limited held that government-owned enterprises cannot afford to terminate employees using the defence of financial distress and also dealt with issues relating to the withdrawal of tendered resignations, relying upon a catena of judgments. Background The…
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DEFINITION OF ‘INDUSTRY’ UNDER THE INDIAN LABOUR LAW AND THE POLITICS AROUND IT
Introduction Legislative actions and court rulings have greatly extended and changed the definition of ‘industry’ over the period of time. Since labour as a subject is included in the concurrent list, both the central and state governments have used it to their advantage in the political arena. Due to lack of clarity in the statutory…