What is the typical organizational structure of trade unions in India?

Answer 1

the structure of trade unions in India has three levels:-

1) plant level/ shop level/ local level

2) state level

3) central level

the trade union sof India are affiliated to two types of organizations.

1) national federation

2) federation of unions

Answer 2

• STRUCTURE OF TRADE UNIONS Plant level Federations Local level Federations Regional Level Federations National Level Federations
• * Unions structure diagram Union Members Shop Stewards (Union Representatives) Branches District and Regional Offices National Office
• * Trade unions are democratic organisations which are accountable to their members for their policies and actions. Unions are normally modelled on the following structure: Members - people who pay a subscription to belong to a union Shop stewards - sometimes called union representatives - who are elected by members of the union to represent them to management Branches - which support union members in different organisations locally. There is usually a branch secretary who is elected by local members District and/or regional offices - these are usually staffed by full time union officials. These are people who are paid to offer advice and support to union members locally A national office - the union's headquarters which offers support to union members and negotiates or campaigns for improvements to their working conditions. At the top of the organisation there is usually a General Secretary and a National Executive Committee, elected by the union's members.
• * AIBOC - All India Bank Officers Confederation AISGEF - All India State Government Employees Federation Center of Indian Trade Unions - Major trade union Hind Mazdoor Sabha - Membership, objectives and trade union situation Indian National Trade Union Congress - History, aims, objectives and activities NCOA - National Confederation of Officer's Association of Central Publid Sector Undertakings Organized Labour - Article on role of organized labour and trade unions in economic liberalization PWTUC - Professional Workers Trade Union Centre of India Trade Union India - Trade union international of public and allied employees
• * Four important central organisations of workers in India are 1. The Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). The Congress Party and the top congress leaders formed the INTUC like Nehru and Patel were associated with it. Every union affiliated to INTUC has to submit its dispute to arbitration after exhausting other means of settlement of disputes. 2. The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC). This union serves as the labour forum of Communist Party of India at present. It is considered as the second largest union in India. 3. The Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS). It was formed in Calcutta by the socialists who neither approved INTUC nor AITUC. The HMS was organised with a view to keeping its members free from any political or other outside interference.
• * The United Trade Union Congress (UTUC). Those persons who were dissident socialist formed it. It functions mainly in Kerala and West Bengal. Centre for Indian Trade Unions (CITU). The Marxists separated from the AITUC in May 1970 and formed the CITU.
• * In addition to the above, there are four other central trade union organisations. They are: • Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) • National Labour Organisation (NLO) • National Front of Indian Trade Unions (NFITU) • Trade Union Congress Committee

Answer 3

Section : Module 4 - Types of Trade Union Structures

Objective

• To examine how trade unions have been developed to promote the process of recruiting, organizing and representing employees covering diverse industries and occupations in the Caribbean.

The term structure refers to the different types of union based on their recruitment patterns and the work areas from which membership is drawn.

When the Moyne Commission visited the Caribbean in the aftermath of the disturbances of the 1930's, Sir Walter Citrine and Morgan Jones, two members of the Commission, and a senior member of the British Trade Union Congress, advised the trade union leaders that they should encourage the development of a general or umbrella type trade union in order to:

1. concentrate the solidarity of workers;
2. reduce chances for union rivalry; and
3. counter the development of a non-democratic organization.

4.1 Types of Structures

In the early 20th century when trade unions were being established, the major models available were:

1. the craft union, which was either based on a single craft or on multiple crafts, or one that was spread across an entire industry relating to similar crafts. It became known as an industrial union in a horizontal arrangement;
2. the industrial union, which was vertically structured in a single industry and existed across a geographical area; and
3. the white collar union which existed mainly for public sector workers, many of which started as associations.

The majority of unions in the Caribbean followed the Citrine and Jones' advice and formed general unions, without occupational or industrial boundaries.

Others formed federations through which trade unions could co-operate and co-ordinate their activities.

In some instances, enterprise unions have started as associations and have broadened from membership at a particular workplace.

4.2 Caribbean examples

Examples of various union structures in the Caribbean are given below:

Craft

• Bahamas Commonwealth Electrical Workers' Union
• Bahamas Guild of Artists
• Grenada Seamen and Waterfront Workers' Trade Union

Industrial

• Aruba Hotel Workers' Union
• Independent Oil Workers' Union of Aruba
• Bahamas United Brotherhood of Longshoremen's Association
• Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers' Union
• Guyana, Mining, Metal and General Workers' Union
• All Trinidad Sugar and General Workers' Union
• Steel Workers Union of Trinidad and Tobago
• Oilfield Workers' Trade Union of Trinidad and Tobago

White Collar

• Antigua and Barbuda Union of Teachers
• The Public Workers Union of Aruba
• Bahamas Professional Pilots Union
• Union of Tertiary Educators of the Bahamas
• Barbados Union of Teachers
• Barbados Registered Nurses Association
• Belize National Teachers Union
• Bermuda Public Services Union
• Grenada Union of Teachers
• Guyana Teachers Union
• Jamaica Civil Service Association

General

• Antigua Trades and Labour Union
• Antigua Workers' Union
• Barbados Workers' Union
• Bermuda Industrial Union
• Grenada Technical and Allied Workers' Union
• Guyana General Workers' Union
• Guyana Agricultural and General Workers' Union
• Bustamante Industrial Trade Union
• St Kitts-Nevis Trades and Labour Union
• National Union of Government & Federated Workers of Trinidad and Tobago

Federation

• General Trade Union Confederation of Aruba
• Curacao Federation of Workers
• Windward Islands Federation of Labour
• Progressive Trade Union Federation (C-47) of Suriname
• 'De Moederband" of Suriname

Enterprise

• LIAT Workers' Union of St Vincent
• Bank Employees Union of Trinidad and Tobago

Craft Unions

The tendency towards the formation of craft unions has been strongest in countries such as the Bahamas and Trinidad and Tobago where skilled and trained workers were willing to develop unions on behalf of themselves. Few craft unions have remained completely for a single craft and tend to become more multi-craft in a battle for economic survival and relevance, as the different craft areas have encountered difficulties in modernizing periods.

Industrial Unions

Like craft unions, industrial unions also depend on changes in the economy. Some industrial unions in areas such as sugar and oil and dockwork has suffered significantly as a result of technological changes.

White Collar

White collar unions are some of the most vibrant and successful in the Caribbean. Many of them are public sector unions, and except in periods of structural adjustment, benefit from financial security as their members are generally able to pay union dues which are deducted from a central source.

There are still many white collar workers in several areas of the Caribbean, especially in supervisory and management positions, who are yet to be organized into trade unions.

General

General or blanket unions which emerged from the early post-Second World War period continue to dominate the trade union scene in the Caribbean. Several unions which started out as craft or industrial unions later expanded to include other types of members and have thus evolved to become general unions.

Federations

Federal types of unions are most prominent in the Dutch areas of the Caribbean.

Enterprise

Enterprise unions are a distinct minority and very few of them exist in the Caribbean.

Rivalry

The existence of several general unions in various territories has led to union rivalry and struggles for territory in some countries. However, this has not been a divisive issue in the Caribbean in recent times.

The reality is that whatever the structure of the trade union, bargaining at the enterprise level is overwhelmingly the predominant pattern of the region. In some instances, such as in the hotel sector, sugar, and the public sector, trade unions attempt industrial agreements which cover the entire sector. Jamaica has long negotiated enterprise agreements, where different unions negotiate agreements with multiple employers in the same area.

Trade Union Centres

Among the Trade Union Centres which exist are the Ravaksur of Suriname, the CTUSAB of Barbados, the NATUC of Trinidad and Tobago, the JCTU of Jamaica and the TUC's in Grenada, Guyana and the Bahamas. These are usually secondary, policy-making bodies.

Corporatism

In recent times, there has been a steady movement to establish trade union centres in the various countries.

This act of centralization is leading to the formation of social partnerships and corporate approaches to industrial relations, where social compacts and protocols are establishing macro-frameworks for dealing with industrial and some non-industrial issues.

4.3 Caribbean Congress of Labour

Since its formation in 1960, the Caribbean Congress of Labour (CCL) which has antecedents from 1926, has been the major regional labour organization in the Caribbean. Its main objectives have been:

1. to encourage the formation of national groupings and/or centres of trade unions;
2. the defence of trade unions against infiltration and subjugation by totalitarian forces;
3. to build and strengthen ties between Free Trade Unions of the Caribbean and those of the rest of the hemisphere and the world; and
4. to maintain and develop a regional clearing house of information and research on the problems of trade union organizations.

In the fulfilment of these four major aims, the Caribbean Congress of Labour has generally been successful. The formation of national trade union centres has proven elusive in areas such as Saint Lucia, Antigua, Dominica and Bermuda; in areas such as Trinidad and Tobago and the Bahamas, more than one national centre operated at some time, with difficulty in bringing the centres together. In Guyana, there has been some splintering from the centre.

Some of the issues which have contributed to the difficulty of forming the national centres include:

1. 1. political differences between the unions;
2. 2. ideological differences; and
3. 3. personality conflicts between leaders.

The position of the Caribbean Congress of Labour has shifted and in recent times the Congress has been trying to establish a relationship with Cuba, based on pragmatic rather than ideological consideration. The CCL continues to subscribe to the policies of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions ( ICFTU), of which it is an affiliate, and to the policies of democracy.

Through its connections with the ICFTU, ORIT and through its links with other trade union institutions like the AFL-CIO and the Canadian Labour Congress, the CCL continues to create links with the world's free labour movement.

The Caribbean Congress of Labour has played a predominant role in training Caribbean labour leaders in education and research and in building capacity.

The financial difficulties of the organization, based on weak support from its affiliates has been a problem. It has played a great role in using its connections with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and with funding agencies to continue its outreach programmes to members.

Exercise

1. Do you think that Caribbean trade unions are likely to merge into larger entities in the future?

2. What advantages could larger general unions have over craft and industrial unions?

3. What sources of financing could assist the Caribbean Congress of Labour to meet the needs of its members?

4. What challenges are there for mergers of Caribbean trade unions?

Answer 4

Functions of Trade Union are