WHILE the Bill purports to be introduced to address the demand of the Unions for recognition, the contents are completely contrary to the same. The demands of Unions has been seeking for a law that makes it mandatory for employers/establishments to recognize unions so as to encourage collective bargaining, the Bill speaks about recognition by the Central Government/State Government as a Central/State Trade Union and ensures no responsibility on the employer whatsoever. It gives wide unrestricted power to the government in the matter of according recognition to Central Trade Unions.

Ironically, the Supreme Court in National Textile Workers’ Union and Ors. vs. P. R. Ramakrishnan and Ors. [AIR 1983 SC 75], had raised a pertinent question “There is another equally, if not more, important factor of production and that is labour... Then how can it be said that capital, which is only one of the factors of production, should be regarded as owner having an exclusive dominion over the concern, as if the concern belongs to it?”

This shift in the Court, has in fact, noted by the Supreme Court itself in Harjinder Singh vs Punjab State Warehousing Corporation [(2010)3SCC192], which found that “Of late, there has been a visible shift in the courts approach in dealing with the cases involving the interpretation of social welfare legislations. The attractive mantras of globalization and liberalisation are fast becoming the raison d'etre of the judicial process and an impression has been created that the constitutional courts are no longer sympathetic towards the plight of industrial and unorganized workers.”, and further held that “any attempt to dilute the constitutional imperatives in order to promote the so called trends of "Globalisation", may result in precarious consequences”. However, the Courts continue to betray the constitutional guarantees to the workers even as recently as last year when the increase in minimum wages to lakhs of workmen across the State of Karnataka was struck down on a technical ground. The Delhi High Court has followed suit and struck down the minimum wage notification of Delhi government recently.