Avani Chokshi

In 1976, a very contentious amendment was made to the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 [hereinafter referred to as the ID Act].

Introduction

The Union Government has recently come out with a 4th draft of the Indian Ports Bill, which seeks to replace the 1908 Indian Ports Act.

The Principal Labour Court, Chennai recently awarded reinstatement with full backwages to Mr. Thirumalai Selvan, an employee of TCS, and in a seven-year legal battle. The case must be seen as an important victory for this section of workers.

(inputs from Bibek Das)

The mass-scale exploitation of tea plantation workers in Assam and across the country has been well documented over the years. Recently, certain orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court and the One Member Committee constituted by the Court to look into the issue of pending dues of these workers, highlights even further the abysmal situation the workers are forced to survive in, and the wholescale violation of their statutory and constitutional rights.

Now, Sir, it has been said that there is no such thing as the right to strike. My reply is that this statement can come from a man who really does not understand what a strike is. If members are prepared to accept my meaning of the word “strike” as being nothing more than a breach of contract, then I submit that a strike is simply another name for the right to freedom ; it is nothing else than the right to the freedom of one’s services on any terms that one wants to obtain.