Page 25 - DMGT516_LABOUR_LEGISLATIONS

Labour Legislations

Notes

Case Study Balbir: The Union Man

Chief Engineer Raju
Raju has been with the company for the last 15 years. He is considered to be very competent
in his job. Raju always greeted people with a smiling face and never lost his temper on the
shop floor. Workers had considerable regard for him. In union circles Raju enjoyed a good
reputation for his fairness. He had a unique style of his own when it came to personnel
matters. He advocated patience and restraint while dealing with people. He would often
say “gone are the days when one could deal with employees strictly. Now you have to be
flexible, considerate and fair”.

Supervisor Madan
A young man of 25, Madan is always keen on meeting production targets. He took genuine
interest in his job and handled all his assignments carefully. He is of the view that top
management and specially the HR manager more often than not, might fail to back up
supervisors in their efforts to bring about some discipline in the plant. He believed that
complaints from supervisors are ignored by management and as a result, workers get
encouraged to indulge in disruptive activities, adversely affecting production.

Balbir Singh
Balbir, a skilled worker, has recently been elected as the Joint Secretary of the Union. He
holds leftist political views, though he is not a member of any political party. He is
ambitious and wants to reach the top levels in union circles as quickly as possible.
On Monday, Raju has hardly entered his office when the supervisor Madan rushes in.
Madan: Sir there is a great commotion in the section. No one is working. Even after
repeated requests, workers have not stopped the shouting and hooting. Sir, please come to
the shop and see for yourself the extent of indiscipline that has become rampant.

Raju: Madan, take your seat. Tell me the truth. I will come to the shopfloor if you so
desire. But first tell me why are you so much upset.
Madan: Sir, you know, Balbir, the joint secretary of the union, was loitering around and
not attending to his machine. I called him and told him to go to his machine and start it.
Raju: Then what happened?
Madan: Balbir retorted quickly, “Do not shout at me. Your lung power does not work
here. Even your bosses cannot order me about like that. What are you, after all?” Many
workers gathered around and witnessed the scene.

Raju: O.K. Now please go to your section. I will ask Balbir to come immediately.
Balbir: Sir, you wanted to see me? What is the purpose?
Raju: Please sit down. What would you have? Tea of coffee? (Presses the buzzer). Bring
two cups of tea. (After the tea has arrived) – Do you need more sugar? Balbir, tell me now
why are you after Madan? He is a sincere and hardworking young supervisor and you
should cooperate with him.

Contd...

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