Industrial relations involves the study of relationships between employers, employees, unions, and the government in an organizational and industry context. These relationships are shaped by social, economic, political, and technological forces. Key aspects of industrial relations include examining the players and their objectives, structures and functions, origins of conflicts and how they are resolved, and how various processes impact outcomes.

1. Introduction to Industrial Relations
Industrial relations has become one of the most delicate and complex problems of modern industrial
society. Industrial progress is impossible without cooperation of labors and harmonious
relationships. Therefore, it is in the interest of all to create and maintain good relations between
employees (labor) and employers (management).
Concept of Industrial Relations:
The term ‘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”. By “relations” we mean “the relationships that exist within the
industry between the employer and his workmen.” The term industrial relations explains the
relationship between employees and management which stem directly or indirectly from
union-employer relationship.
Industrial relations are the relationships between employees and employers within the
organizational settings. The field of industrial relations looks at the relationship between
management and workers, particularly groups of workers represented by a union. Industrial
relations are basically the interactions between employers, employees and the government,
and the institutions and associations through which such interactions are mediated.
The term industrial relations has a broad as well as a narrow outlook. Originally, industrial
relations was broadly defined to include the relationships and interactions between employers
and employees. From this perspective, industrial relations covers all aspects of 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, industrial relations pertains to the study and practice of collective
bargaining, trade unionism, and labor-management relations, while human resource
management is a separate, largely distinct field that deals with nonunion employment
relationships and the personnel practices and policies of employers.
The relationships which arise at and out of the workplace generally include the relationships
between individual workers, the relationships between workers and their employer, the
relationships between employers, the relationships employers and workers have with the
organizations formed to promote their respective interests, and the relations between those
organizations, at all levels. industrial relations also includes the processes through which
these relationships are expressed (such as, collective bargaining, workers’ participation in
decision-making, and grievance and dispute settlement), and the management of conflict
between employers, workers and trade unions, when it arises.
Definitions of Industrial Relations
The simplest way to explore a subject is to start by looking at ways in which it has been
defined..
• The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines industrial relations as “the dealings or relationships
of a usually large business or industrial enterprise with its own workers, with labour in

2. general, with governmental agencies, or with the public”. This definition appears to point to
relationships from the perspective of an organization and limits it to an industrial or business
organization. It suggests a descriptive point of view relating to an entire range of
relationships that an industrial organization may have with the stakeholders, including its
employees. Does the inclusion of only industrial organizations in the definition mean that
the central government employees protesting the anomalies in the Pay Commission report is
not a subject matter of industrial relations? If we expand the scope here to include all
organizations, should not a term such as employee relations be more appropriate?
• The Encyclopaedia Britannica2
defines industrial relations as the “study of human behaviour
in the workplace, focusing especially on the influence such relations have on an
organization's productivity”. This simple definition points to the existence of only two
players operating in the industry and narrows down the scope from the previous definition
to only relationships between employer and employees. It does not include anything about
the dynamics and context of the relationship. The simplicity of the definition leaves out vital
players and processes of the IR.
• Dale Yoder, in his definition, worked on the above premise but focused on issues emanating
out of employment, describing “industrial relationship to be the designation of a whole field
of relationships which exist because of the necessary collaboration of men and women in
the employment process of an industry”3
. Industrial relations describe the “relationship
between managements, employees or among employees and their organizations that
characterize or grow out of employment”. Here, the emphases are on all kinds of
relationships that come into existence because of employment. By implication, trade unions,
employers' associations, State regulation and their impact on and from the basic employer–
employee relationship would all get included in the definition.
IR Is
• A study of the relationship between employers and employees
• At an organization, industry or a nation level
• State's role
• Societal, economic, political and technological forces as context
• It includes:
o players, their objectives
o structures
o conflicts (origins and resolutions)

3. o contexts and their impact
o processes and their outcomes.
A Working Definition
From all the above definitions, we may try to piece together a working definition for
ourselves. Our working definition must take the following into account:
• IR is about relationships.
• The origin is in the relationship of employment.
• Employer–employee relationship pertains to all kinds of organizations.
Figure 1.1 Industrial relations—a pictorial representation.
• There are actors other than the employer and the employees who influence the relationship.
• The relationships are shaped by the actors, structures, rules, law, technology, etc.
• The impact of social, economic, political and technological features of the context on the
shaping of these relationships.
Industrial relations, therefore, at its core, is a discipline, that concerns itself with the study of
the relationship between employers and employees at an organization, industry or a nation
level. It also concerns itself with the two-way interaction that the State may have in
influencing the relationship(s). These relationships are shaped in a larger context of societal,
economic, political and technological forces that are in existence. The study encompasses the
players and their objectives, the structures and their functions, the conflicts and their origins
and resolutions, the contexts and their impact, the “processes” and their outcomes.

4. Figure 1.1 is a visual representation of our working definition. While this may not be a
rigorous definition of a social scientist, it does capture the essence for a student or a
practising manager. At this stage, keep the visual representation of the definition in mind. We
will explore it further in the later part of the text.
The Scope of Industrial Relations
Different definitions of industrial relations provide different perspectives from which the
term IR has been looked at. The scope of IR, therefore, should encompass an examination of
these perspectives. The scope of industrial relations would include:
• Relations between employee groups/association or unions and management, management
and the government, unions and government, or between employers and unorganized
employees. It would also include collective relations among trade unions, employers'
associations and the government.
• The activities relating to the above relationship would entail:
o Structuring of labour-management relations and its regulation
o Labour legislative compliance
o Negotiating work-related contracts
Key Elements in IR
• Relations existing in industry
• Relations between:
o unions and management
o unions themselves, management and the government, and unions and
government
o employers and employees
• conflicts in relationship
• regulation by the State