Labour-management relations and labour issues have assumed new dimensions in India consequent to economic liberalization and globalization. This book dispassionately discusses the changing perspectives and emerging issues in employer-employee relations in industry which have arisen in the wake of these rapid changes. Beginning with a history of the industrial relations system, Professor Venkata Ratnam assesses the social and economic impact of structural adjustment on labour in India. He addresses the important question of aligning economic policies and labour laws with those of industrial relations. Drawing lessons from the experience of South-East Asian countries, the author emphasizes the need to develop sound labour-management relations instead of concentrating merely on dispute resolution. The book discusses the role of bipartism and tripartism in the context of structural changes, and the current trends in collective bargaining and shopfloor-level consultation and cooperation. Outlining various approaches and the options available to deal with the obsolescence of workforce skills, it highlights the need for promoting flexibility and workforce adjustment with a dual concern for equity and efficiency. The book also includes interesting discussions on judicial activism and on issues relating to protectionism and social clause within the framework of India’s commitment to international labour standards. It concludes with a look at the future of work and the emerging paradigms in employment relations in the new millennium. This timely work will be indispensable to practitioners, researchers and students in the fields of human resource management, industrial relations, personnel management and labour law.
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