Trade unions in India


Trade unions in India are registered and file annual returns under the Trade Union Act . Statistics on trade unions are collected annually by the Labour Bureau of the Ministry of Labour, Government of India. According to the data released for 2012, there were 16,154 trade unions with a combined membership of 9.18 million, based on returns from 15 states out of a total of 28 states and 9 union territories. The trade union movement in India is largely divided along political lines and follows a pre-Independence pattern of overlapping interactions between political parties and unions. The net result of this system is debated, as it has both advantages and disadvantages. According to data submitted by various trade unions to the Ministry of Labour and Employment as part of a survey, INTUC, with a combined membership of 33.3 million, emerged as the largest trade union in India as of 2013.
Firm or industry-level trade unions are often affiliated with larger federations. The largest federations in the country, which represent labour at the national level, are known as central trade union organisations. As of 2002, when the last trade union verification was carried out, there were 12 CTUOs recognised by the Ministry of Labour.

History

The establishment of textile and clothing mills around the port cities of Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, and Surat in the latter half of the 19th century marked the beginnings of the industrial workforce in India. Several incidents of strikes and protests by workers were recorded during this period. The credit for the first association of Indian workers is generally attributed to the Bombay Mill-Hands Association, founded by N.M. Lokhande in 1890. This was shortly after the passing of the 'First' Factories Act in 1881 by the British government. The subsequent years saw the formation of several labour associations and unions. The first registered trade union is considered to be the Madras Labour Union, founded by B.P. Wadia in 1918, while the first trade union federation established was the All India Trade Union Congress in 1920.
Following the rapid growth of unions around the time of the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the establishment of the ILO, industrial conflict began to rise, with over 1,000 strikes recorded between 1920 and 1924. The situation intensified with the arrest of prominent leaders and trade unionists in the infamous 'Cawnpore Conspiracy Case' of 1924, where union leaders were accused of attempting a Communist revolution to overthrow the ruling British government. Subsequently, the Trade Union Act was enacted, creating rules for the regulation and closer monitoring of trade unions. In the first year of the law's implementation, 28 unions registered and submitted returns, with a total membership of 100,619. The number of unions grew rapidly thereafter, and by the time of India’s independence in 1947, there were 2,766 registered unions with a combined membership of over 1.66 million. This broad influence of unions and workers' organisations led to the enactment of significantly favourable social legislation in the first decade of Independence, including several important labour laws.

Independence (1947) to liberalisation (1991)

Following the country’s independence in 1947 and the formation of the republic in 1950, India largely adopted a socialist economic approach, promoting public sector employment and pro-worker legislation. The trade union movement reflected the major political divisions of the time, being primarily divided along socialist and communist lines. The subsequent decades saw significant growth in trade union membership, with the number of active unions peaking in the mid-1970s and mid-1980s. While the 1970s were marked by political instability, the 1980s saw a shift towards more market-friendly policies, increased support for industrialists, and implicit opposition to workers. Two key events during this period were the 1974 railway strike and the Great Bombay textile strike of 1982, the latter of which led to a prolonged and complex stalemate.

Liberalisation (1991) to present

The period following economic liberalisation in 1991 was characterised by reduced government intervention in the economy, a decline in public sector employment, and increased encouragement for the private sector. Efforts to unionise in the private sector were often met with opposition, and the general withdrawal of state support for workers further undermined their bargaining power. These policies resulted in stagnation in the number of unionised formal sector workers.
A gradual shift in focus towards the importance of the informal sector and 'informal employment in the formal sector' from the late 1990s onwards led trade unions to also focus on these workers. This shift resulted in greater enrolment of informal sector workers and an increase in union membership. The central trade union organisations raised their combined membership from 13.21 million in 1989 to 24.85 million in 2002. Nearly all CTUOs now have at least 20 percent of their official members from the informal sector.

Central trade union organisations (CTUOs) of India

Local, firm-level, or industry-level trade unions are often affiliated with larger federations. The largest federations in the country represent labour at the national level and are known as central trade union organisations. To acquire the CTUO status, a trade union federation must have a verified membership of at least 500,000 workers spread across a minimum of four states and four industries. Trade union membership verification is usually conducted once a decade, and an updated verification with new criteria is currently underway, with 2011 as the reference year. Complications around membership verification have arisen due to discrepancies between the membership claimed by unions and the actual number of members. These issues have increased in recent years with the wider inclusion of informal sector workers in union membership data.
The International Labour Organization has listed 12 organisations that are officially recognised as CTUOs under the terms set by the Ministry of Labour.
AcronymLabour UnionMembership Membership Membership Political RelationshipInternational Affiliation
1AICCTUAll India Central Council of Trade Unions639,9622,500,000Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) LiberationWorld Federation of Trade Unions
2AITUCAll India Trade Union Congress1,798,0932,677,97914,200,000Communist Party of IndiaWorld Federation of Trade Unions
3AIUTUCAll India United Trade Union Centre802,8061,368,5354,700,000Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist)
4BMSBharatiya Mazdoor Sangh3,117,3246,215,79717,100,000Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
5CITUCentre of Indian Trade Unions1,477,4723,222,5325,700,000Communist Party of India (Marxist)World Federation of Trade Unions
6HMSHind Mazdoor Sabha923,5173,342,2139,200,000International Trade Union Confederation
7INTUCIndian National Trade Union Congress2,706,4513,892,01133,300,000Indian National CongressInternational Trade Union Confederation
8LPFLabour Progressive Federation611,5061,900,000Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
9SEWASelf Employed Women's Association539,523606,9351,700,000International Trade Union Confederation
10UTUCUnited Trade Union Congress229,225383,946Revolutionary Socialist PartyWorld Federation of Trade Unions
11TUCCTrade Union Coordination Centre230,139732,7601,600,000All India Forward BlocWorld Federation of Trade Unions

Other trade unions and centres

Notable trade union leaders in India

Participants

According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey of 2019, it shows that the Indian economy has shrunk for the first time in four decades, from 467.7 million in 2011–12 to 461.5 million in 2017–18. Agriculture experienced the most massive layoffs, with 29.3 million workers losing their jobs. Women account for the vast majority of those who have lost their jobs.