COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

INTRODUCTION

Bargaining is the procedure of debating, cajoling, discussing and even frightening so as to arrive at an amicable agreement for those being represented. Collective bargaining is a process by which the conditions and terms of workers are regulated by agreements among their bargaining agents and employers. The fundamental objective of collective bargaining is to arrive at an agreement on wages and other conditions of employ. The employer and the employees both may begin the procedure with divergent views but finally try to reach a compromise, making some of sacrifices. As soon as a compromise is retained, the terms of agreement are put into operation.

The underlying idea of collective bargaining is that the employee and employer relations should not be selected unilaterally or with the intervention of any third party. Both of the parties must settle their differences voluntarily through negotiations, yielding some of the concessions and making sacrifices in the procedure. Both should bargain from a position of strength; there should be no effort to exploit the vulnerability or weaknesses of one party. With the development of union movement all over the globe & the emergence of employers' associations, the collective bargaining procedure has undergone significant changes. Both of the parties have, more or less, realised the significance of peaceful co-existence for their mutual benefit and constant progress.