Dear Gopi,
Handling Strike Notifications in a Factory Environment
Soon after the management receives the strike notification officially through the employee union, the management should, before communicating with anyone in the labor department or the inspector of factories, send a meeting request to the employee union representatives to see if any opportunity is available to resolve the issues. It's a common phenomenon in a factory environment for the management to be threatened with a strike in order to attract attention.
Being in HR, it is essential to strike a balance in relationships between employees and management. Normally, the gap in relationships and lack of communication leads to all sorts of hassles. Involving any government officials during the initial stages complicates the system and can cause irreparable damages, as officials often have selfish motives.
Forming a Grievance Handling Committee
The grievance handling committee should always comprise both management and workers. When forming the committee, ensure that you choose level-headed people who consider both business and human relationships. Most of the time, it is the fault of the management that triggers unrest among employees. For example, not communicating with employees about management strategies related to future growth, product performance, company performance, etc. Sometimes, not having proper employee engagement initiatives also leads to dissatisfaction among employees.
The appropriate time to inform the Inspector of Factories or the labor department is only when you reach a point of no return.
Regards,
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