Industrial relations encompasses all such factors that influence behavior of people at work

Institutions: It includes government, employers, trade unions, union federations or associations, government bodies, labor tribunals and other organizations which have direct or indirect impact on the industrial relations systems.

Characters: It aims to study the role of workers unions and employers’ federations’ officials, shop stewards, industrial relations officers/ managers, mediator/ arbitrator, judges of labor tribunal etc.

Methods: Methods focus on collective bargaining, workers participation in the industrial relations schemes, discipline procedure, grievance redress machinery, dispute settlements machinery working of closed shops, union reorganization, organizations of protest through methods like revisions of labor tribunals etc.

Contents: It includes matters pertaining to employment conditions like pay, hours of works, leave with wages, health and safety, disciplinary actions, lay-off, dismissals, retirements etc., laws relating to such activities, regulations governing labor welfare, social security, industrial relations, issues concerning with workers’ participation in management, collective bargaining etc.

The term industrial relations have a broad as well as narrow outlook. Originally, industrial relations were broadly defined to include the relationships and interactions between employers and employees. (From this perspective, industrial relations cover all aspects to the employment relationship, including human resource management, employee relations, and union-management (or labor relations). Now its meaning has become more specific and restricted. Accordingly, it pertains to the study and practice of collective bargaining, trade unionism, and labor management relations, while human resource management is separate, largely distinct field that deals with nonunion employment relationships and the personnel practices and policies of employers. This has happens because of the development of human relations in the society and the development of recognition to the worker from society as well as employer. Industrial revolution also contributed to this in partially. Specialization to a specific task has developed the employee/worker to done the job with in short time of period, and it has developed the workers skills in that particular task as well. It is caused to make a demand to the skillful worker at the labor market for his/her abilities, and also created the bargaining power of them to everything than the earlier stages of industrial development, simply at pre industrial revolution, Fayols’ stages etc. Managements/ employers also had to step towards to maintain a good relationship with workers to get maximum output of work and earn profits, and grab the maximum market share to them in competitive market. All these revolutions begin because of the competition in the market and having a competent employee is competitive advantages to them in survived in the market.

What is the importance of the concept of industrial relations?

Industrial relations have become one of the most complex problems of modern industrial society; that complexity has caused to make the importance of industrial relations in the modern world in the function of human resource management. Why is that? The reason is industrial progress is impossible without cooperation of labors and harmonious relationships between workers and management. Therefore, it is in the interest of all to create and maintain good relations between employees and employers (Managers).

“Industrial relations involve attempts at arriving at solutions between the conflicting objectives and values; between the profit motive and social gain; between discipline and freedom, between authority and industrial democracy; between bargaining and co-operation; and between conflicting interests of the individual, the group and the community. - Lester”

The Concept of “Industrial Relations”

The concept is used to denote the collective relationships between management and the workers. This is also called as “Labor relations”. The term of Industrial Relations comprises of two terms “Industry” and “Relations”. Industry refers to “any productive activity in which an individual (or a group of individuals) is (are) engaged. Industry Relations refer to “the relationships that exist with in the industry between the employer and his workman/ or employee. Relations also can be define as “the way in which two or more people or groups feel about and behave towards each other” and “the way in which two or more people or things are connected; a thing’s effect on or relevance to another”. Also industrial relations (IR) contain the relationship between employer-employer as well. This is also including the other third party stakeholders who can influence in to this worker-management relationship, such as government and governing bodies.