Trade Unions Act, 1926

The Maharashtra Girni Kamgar Union (appellant) sought cancellation of the registration of respondent No.4 union as a representative union under Section 15(b)(ii) of the Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946, alleging that its membership fell below the 25% statutory minimum for a continuous three‑month period. The dispu…

The State Bank of India (SBI) challenged a High Court order that directed it to grant an unrecognised minority union, the All Orissa State Bank Officers Association, rights under Rule 24 of the 1994 Verification Rules to discuss individual grievances with the employer. The Supreme Court held that there is no common‑law…

The Borosil Glass Works Ltd. Employees' Union, a registered trade union, rejected the joint membership application of D.D. Bambode and others because the applications did not follow the union's procedure. Bambode filed a complaint under Section 28(1A) of the Trade Unions Act, 1926, seeking a consent certificate, but th…

The Kopargaon Taluka Sakhar Kamgar Sabha, a representative union registered under the Trade Unions Act, 1926, held elections for its Managing Committee. The Election Officer introduced an election programme that created separate electoral colleges for each of the seven units and reserved eight seats for women and the r…

The appellant trade union filed a petition under Section 8 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 on behalf of about 3,000 workers seeking payment of outstanding dues from the respondent jute mill, which had been closed. The NCLT and subsequently the NCLAT dismissed the petition, holding that a trade union is not …

B. Srinivasa Reddy, a retired Chief Engineer, was re‑appointed as Managing Director of the Karnataka Urban Water Supply & Drainage Board on a contractual basis "until further orders". The Karnataka Urban Water Supply & Drainage Board Employees' Association, an unregistered trade union, challenged the appointment by fil…

The petitioners, a union of daily‑rated gardeners employed by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd., a government company, sought regularisation, continuance of service and equal pay, alleging that they had worked more than 240 days a year for several years and that artificial breaks were created to deny them permanence. The Alla…

The Automobile Products of India Employees Union (appellant) and the Association of Engineering Workers, Bombay (respondent) contested the recognition of a trade union under the Maharashtra Recognition of Trade Unions & Prevention of Unfair Labour Practices Act, 1971. After a series of applications for cancellation and…

The Union of India appealed a Bombay High Court judgment that had quashed an order dividing electoral constituencies for the election of a Works Committee under the Industrial Disputes (Central) Rules, 1957. The order sought to create multiple constituencies to represent various sections of workers, even though the M.T…

The Trade Fair Authority of India Employees' Union demanded housing, regularisation of casual workers and wage revision, but management failed to act, leading the Union to call a one‑day strike on 21 January 1987 after a denied request for a general body meeting. Management responded by suspending and later dismissing …

The Orchid Employees' Union sought an interim injunction restraining its members from assembling within 100 metres of the company's premises and from obstructing traffic, which was initially granted by a District Munsif. The Madras High Court set aside that injunction, noting a pending cancellation of the union under t…

The appellant, a former president of the Poona Employees Union, sought cancellation of the union's registration certificate alleging fraud or mistake, filing a petition under Section 10 of the Trade Unions Act, 1926. The Additional Registrar cancelled the certificate, the Industrial Court set aside that cancellation, a…

The Air India Cabin Crew Association challenged the management’s revised promotion policy and the government’s 2003 directive that equalised the retirement and flying ages of male Flight Pursers and female Air Hostesses. The petitioners argued that these changes violated earlier bilateral settlements, the Air Corporati…

The Pune Taximen's Consumer Co-operative Society Ltd. filed a writ petition under Article 226 seeking directions for the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) to implement a sub‑committee's recommendations and a resolution dated 4‑Feb‑2004, and to shift its members to specific parking slots (Gala Nos. P‑49 to P‑52) within…

The Food Corporation of India (FCI) had several registered trade unions and needed to select a sole bargaining agent. Both FCI and the unions agreed to use a secret ballot to determine which union(s) represented the majority of workers. The Supreme Court was asked to prescribe a procedure that would ensure a fair and r…

The petitioners, female make‑up artists, challenged the Cine Costume Make‑up Artists and Hair Dressers Association's bye‑laws that barred women from obtaining make‑up artist cards and required a five‑year Maharashtra residence. The Court examined the constitutional guarantees of equality (Arts. 14, 15, 21), the right t…

The case concerned 85 workers who had resigned from the Cochin Port Thozhilali Union and sought a refund of amounts that the union, through its president‑treasurer G.S. Dhara Singh, had collected from the employer on their behalf for gratuity and accident benefit funds. The workers filed civil suits demanding an accoun…

The appellant, Sharimk Uttarsah Sabha, a trade union, sought to be impleaded in an Industrial Court proceeding where Raymond Woolen Mills Ltd. had complained of unfair labour practices under the Maharashtra Recognition of Trade Unions and Prevention of Unfair Labour Practices Act, 1971. The Industrial Court had restrai…

The Karnataka State Financial Corporation (KSFC) sold the lease‑hold rights of the closed industrial concern Mysore Panel and Boards Pvt Ltd, whose 83 workmen had earlier been awarded statutory dues of Rs 29,17,062 by courts under Section 33‑C of the Industrial Disputes Act and the Payment of Gratuity Act. The workmen’…

The Supreme Court examined whether a retired employee of the State Bank of India, who had been elected General Secretary of the SBI Staff Association before his retirement, could continue to represent the union and negotiate with management. The appellants argued that Sections 6(e) and 22 of the Trade Unions Act, 1926 …

The Poona Employees Union (PEU) applied to the Industrial Court for recognition in place of the existing recognized union, Bharatiya Kamgar Sena (BKS), claiming it had over 30% membership and a larger membership base during the relevant six‑month period. The Industrial Court, relying on the Investigating Officer's repo…

The Federation of Bank of India Staff Unions and an employee sought to have three workmen nominated as directors of the Bank of India under the Nationalised Banks (Management and Miscellaneous Provisions) Scheme, 1970. The Central Government rejected the panel because the candidates had less than three years of service…