As a part of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, several organizations are expected to follow a set of rules and regulations. One of these sections states that the company should form a works committee. However, forming it or the works committee procedure is unclear.
In this article, we discuss the importance of the works committee and why you should form it.
What Is the Works Committee?
According to the Industrial Disputes Act of India, every employer should form a works committee if they have more than 100 employees in the organization.
The works committee members should be comprised of equal number of workmen (employees) and individuals representing employers.
The employer should select the employees in consultation with the Union (if already formed in the organization).
The Act stipulates:
In the case of any industrial establishment in which one hundred or more workmen are employed or have been employed on any day in the preceding twelve months, the appropriate Government may by general or special order require the employer to constitute in the prescribed manner a Works Committee consisting of representatives of employers and workmen engaged in the establishment so however that the number of representatives of workmen on the Committee shall not be less than the number of representatives of the employer. The representatives of the workmen shall be chosen in the prescribed manner from among the workmen engaged in the establishment and in consultation with their trade union, if any, registered under the Indian Trade Unions Act, 1926 (16 of 1926 ).
The Need for Works Committee Procedure
The need for the works committee procedure is to reduce the material differences between both parties.
This committee looks after maintaining a healthy relationship between the employer and the employees through the collective efforts of both parties. It also aims at improving industrial peace and works on matters involving general peace and work-related issues.
Features of Works Committee
In this section, we will discuss some of the common features of the works committee procedure that will help you constitute a committee.
- The number of members in the committee should be fixed and not more than 20. Here, it is also specified that the members of employers should not be more than members of employees.
- The representatives from the employer’s side should be selected with the consent of the employer and these people should be associated with the organization directly.
- Before the formation of the works committee, the employer should inform the union if they have one. Further, during elections, two groups should be formed: one of the union members who want to be a part of the committee and other non-union members.
- The candidates added to the committee should have worked with the company for at least 1 year and should have attained a minimum age of 19 years.
- The voters who are voting for committee members should be at least 18 years of age and must have worked in the company for atleast 6 months.
- The Central Government or the equivalent authority holds the right to dissolve this committee if they feel it is not constituted as per the guidelines.
- If you wish to understand the full works committee procedure, visit here.
Conclusion
The works committee is important in industrial organization. Hence, it should be constituted with proper guidelines as laid out by the government.
