[Points: Introduction what it is—causes—harmful effects—to be carefully used government measures.]
The word 'strike' is a very familiar word in these days. We always hear of strikes in mills and factories and in means of public conveyance like buses and taxis, even among railway employees. There is nothing of physical violence in strikes: it means organised stoppage of work by workers on account of some grievance against the management. It is a nonviolent weapon adopted by workers to compel the employer to remove their grievances.
Strikes may be said to be the natural result of modern industrial system, particularly in a democratic country. This system allows a great disparity in the incomes of different classes of people. The result is a conflict between capital and labour. The capitalists have control over management. So they can easily manage to get the lion's share of the profit, leaving only a bare minimum for the workers. Naturally the latter cannot tolerate this state of affairs. They claim that as they play an important part in the management of their concerns, they also have a right to share in the profits made by their labour. They demand higher salaries, higher bonuses, and other amenities for a better way of life. They regard their demands as legitimate, and stick to them as long as possible or until a settlement is arrived at.
But there is a dark side also. Strikes often cause great sufferings to the workmen. They do not generally get any salary for the strike period. So they have to live during the period on their savings, if any, or upon their union funds or upon loans.
A continued strike may lead to the closure of the mill or factory concerned or to its transfer to a distant place. What this means to the workers themselves as well as to the locality may be easily realised. This has happened in the case of many industrial concerns in West Bengal during the last few years. What this has meant to the employees and to the state are within the knowledge of every Bengalee.
In short, though a strike is a legitimate weapon for workers, it must not be used until all peaceful means have been tried for solution of the dispute.
The Government of India has already taken some steps in the matter. The Industrial Disputes Act Provides for Conciliation officers and Industrial Tribunals to settle disputes between labour and capital. No strike can be called so long as the dispute is in their hands.
