EDUCATION

1. REGISTRATION OF TRADE UNION
BA/BBA LLB Ramandeep Kaur
LABOUR LAW Assistant Professor of Law
7TH SEMESTER

2. Registration of Trade Unions:
• i) Legal Status of Registered Trade Union
• ii) Mode of Registration
• iii) Powers and Duties of Registrar

9. Legal Status of a Registered Trade
union
separate legal entity of trade
Perpetual Succession
Power to hold
immovable property
can be a party to
sue and be
No civil suit or legal proceeding
Dispute

10. Rights and
Liabilities of
Registered
Trade Unions:
1. Objects on
Which
General
Funds May Be
Spent
2.
Constitution
of a Separate
Fund for
Political
Purposes
3. Criminal
Conspiracy in
Trade
Disputes
4. Immunity
from Civil
Suit in
Certain Cases
5.
Enforceability
of
Agreements
6. Right to
Inspect Books
of Trade
Unions

11. Legal Status of a Registered Trade
union
• Trade Union which is registered shall be a body
corporate ( means separate legal entity of trade Union)
under the name it has been registered
• Trade Union have Perpetual Succession which means the
existence of the Union or the continuation with
regardless of any death, change in membership etc. and
a common seal.
• It also has a power to obtain and hold movable and
immovable property and can be a party to contract,
• It can sue and be sued by the name which is registered.
• No civil suit or legal proceeding can be proceed against
trade union, related to any act done in pursuit of a trade
dispute in certain situation.

14. • Procedure for Registration of a Trade Union
Under section 3, registrar is appointed for
of the Trade Union.
Also, the Appropriate government is authorised
additional and deputy registrar for particular
registrar of trade union is unable to discharge
functions. Within a local limit, he may exercise
functions as Registrar as prescribed for this

17. Mode of Registration
•
Section 4(1) of the act, talks about the
registration of trade unions. Which says that for
the purpose of registration of the trade union,
there should be a minimum of seven members.
The reason behind the fixation of a minimum
of seven members is to encourage the
formation of more and more trade unions.
In order to summarize, section talks about the
two conditions required to fulfil the registration
of a Trade union.

18. • These conditions are:
Requirement of seven or more members as signatories.
Provided that there are 100 or 10% whichever is less are
the industry.
The sec 4(2) of the act mentions that any application
(1) regarding the registration of a Trade union cannot
merely on the reason that some of the applicants not
exceeding half of the total number of persons have:
• Either ceased to be the members of Trade union before
the Trade union; or
• Has given a written notice in writing to the Registrar
dissociation.

19. • https://labour.delhi.gov.in/content/application-
registration-trade-union-form

26. POWERS AND DUTIES OF REGISTRAR
Section 7,8,9, 10, 11 of Trade Union Act talks
about the powers and duties of registrar like –
registration of appeals
petitions and applications
receive applications for amendment of appeal
the petition or application or subsequent
proceedings.

27. Powers and Duties of
Registrar
• The registrar in order to satisfy himself that the provisions of
section 5, 6 are fulfilled can call for further particulars and is
having power to even refuse the registration of Trade Union if
such information is not given to the registrar. Also, if there is
a trade union that wants to get registered and go near
registrar for registration. Registrars find out that the name by
which trade union wants to get registered is name of
already existing another trade union. So, here the
registrar can do two things:
• Alteration: registrar can suggest the trade union that wants
to get registered to change its name.
• Refusal: if the members of trade union does not obey the
orders of registrar then registration can even get cancel.

28. DUTIES OF REGISTRAR:
• the following cases talk about the duties of registrar-
O.N.G.C Workers Association v. State of West
Bengal: it is the duty of registrar to check that
registration is given to that trade union only which
comply with the conditions of registration. This case also
talks about limitation on the powers of registrar.
• Registrar is not a quasi-judicial authority and has no
power to decide the disputes on the question of fact or
law.
• North East Railway Mazdoor Union v. Registrar
of Trade Union: this case talks about the
administrative duty of registrar. Any changes in the
name of office bearers

29. are being observed by registrar. It is duty of registrar
to check whether the recorded facts conform to the
actual facts or not.
Inland Steam Navigation Workers Union(in
re): after receiving of the application by registrar, it is
the duty of registrar to examine the application. If the
trade union is having same objects as mentioned in
the rules and all the requirements of act and
regulations get complied with, it was duty of registrar
to register trade union

33. Dissolution of Trade Unions
• Section 27 of the Trade Union Act, 1926 deals with
the dissolution of the associated trade union
organizations.
• A notice of dissolution signed by any seven members
and the secretary of the union should be sent to the
registrar within 14 days of the dissolution.
• On being satisfied the registrar shall register the
notice and the union shall stand dissolved from the
date.

34. Case Laws:
General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland v Lord
Overtoun: Macalister v Young 1904 7 F (HL) 1 (Bannatyne v
Overtoun [1904] AC 515)

35. Change of name
Section 23 in The Trade Unions Act, 1926
Change of name. —Any registered Trade Union may,
with the consent of not less than two-thirds of the total
number of its members and subject to the provisions of
section 25, change its name.

36. 25. Notice of change of name or
amalgamation
• A written Notice for the change of name has to be sent
to the Registrar signed by the Secretary and 7 members
of the Trade Union.
• If the proposed name is identical with that by which
any other existing trade union has been registered or,
in the opinion of the Registrar, so nearly resembles
such name as to be likely to deceive the public or the
members of either trade union, the Registrar shall
refuse to register the change of name.
• Save as provided in sub-section (2), the Registrar shall,
if he is satisfied that the provisions of this Act in
respect of change of name have been complied with,
register the change of name in the register referred to in
section 8, and the change of name shall have effect
from the date of such registration.

37. Effects of change of name -
According to Section 26(1) of The Trade Unions
Act, 1926 Change of name of a registered trade
union does not affect the rights and obligations of
the Trade Union or render defective any legal
proceeding by or against the Trade Union.