Section 3 of Industrial Disputes Act 1947: Works Committee
Section 3 provides for a Works Committee in an industrial establishment where one hundred or more workmen are employed, or were employed on any day during the preceding twelve months. Constitution is not automatic merely because the numerical threshold is met: the appropriate Government may, by general or special order, require the employer to constitute the Committee in the prescribed manner.
Section 3 - Works Committee
Section 3(1): In an 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 a Works Committee in the prescribed manner. The Committee consists of representatives of employers and workmen engaged in the establishment. The number of workmen's representatives must not be less than the number of employer representatives. Workmen's representatives are to be chosen in the prescribed manner from among workmen engaged in the establishment and in consultation with their trade union, if any, registered under the Trade Unions Act, 1926.
Section 3(2): The Works Committee must promote measures for securing and preserving amity and good relations between the employer and workmen. For that purpose, it may comment on matters of common interest or concern and endeavour to compose material differences of opinion concerning such matters.
When Can a Works Committee Be Required?
The statutory threshold is one hundred or more workmen employed in the industrial establishment, or employed on any day during the preceding twelve months. Once that condition exists, the appropriate Government has power to issue a general or special order requiring constitution of a Works Committee. The expression "appropriate Government" is defined in Section 2(a) and depends on the industry or establishment concerned.
Composition and Representation
The Committee must include representatives of both the employer and the workmen. Section 3 expressly protects parity on the workmen's side by providing that their representatives cannot be fewer than the employer's representatives. Workmen's representatives must come from among workmen engaged in the establishment, and the statutory process requires consultation with a registered trade union where one exists.
Central Rules on Constitution and Procedure
For establishments governed by the Industrial Disputes (Central) Rules, 1957, the detailed machinery for Works Committees is contained in Part VII. The Central Rules address constitution, number of members, employer representatives, consultation with registered trade unions, electoral constituencies, qualifications, election arrangements, officers, term of office, vacancies, meetings, facilities, returns and dissolution.
Under the Central Rules, the total membership is fixed to provide representation to relevant categories, groups and classes of workmen and sections, shops or departments, subject to the prescribed ceiling. The Committee is required to meet as often as necessary and not less often than once in three months. Applicable State rules should be checked where the appropriate Government is a State Government.
Purpose of a Works Committee
A Works Committee is intended to promote workplace cooperation and preserve good relations. Its statutory role focuses on matters of common interest or concern and on attempting to compose material differences of opinion. It should therefore be distinguished from the statutory adjudicatory authorities established under the Act, such as a Labour Court under Section 7 or a Tribunal under Section 7A.
State Amendments Preserved from the Source
Gujarat - Sections 3A and 3B
The source page records Gujarat Act No. 21 of 1972 inserting provisions concerning a Joint Management Council. For industrial disputes for which the State Government is the appropriate Government, the recorded amendment permits the State Government, where it considers action desirable in the public interest, to require specified industrial establishments with five hundred or more workmen to constitute a Joint Management Council in the prescribed manner.
The source further records functions of the Council including promoting cordial employer-employee relations, building understanding and trust, promoting productivity, improving welfare and safety administration, training employees to understand management responsibilities, advising the employer on specified management matters, and performing prescribed administrative functions.
Maharashtra
The source records Maharashtra Act No. 1 of 1972 adding a proviso to Section 3(1) under which, where there is a recognised union for an undertaking under applicable law, the recognised union appoints its nominees to represent the workmen engaged in the undertaking. The recorded explanation states that "undertaking" includes an establishment.
Rajasthan - Section 3A
The source records Rajasthan Act No. 34 of 1958 inserting Section 3A concerning appointment by the State Government of a Registrar of Unions for the State and permitting appointment of an Assistant Registrar of Unions for a local area, with such powers of the Registrar as may be conferred by general or special order.