Why workers need unions(The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2:National 
Prelims level: Gig economy 
Mains level: Social issues 

Context:

• Covid-19 and the resultant distress in the job market have once again highlighted the importance of trade unions, especially in ensuring that worker welfare becomes a key agenda of policymakers as well as companies. 
• Inarguably, one of the biggest and most immediate casualties of the Covid-19 crisis are workers in sectors where unions are non-existent. 
• The very absence of collective bargaining powers has exposed these workers to extreme uncertainty, and they fall prey to the draconian measures taken by their companies. 
• The gig economy is a worthy example. 

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Three crucial factors in gig economy:

• It is the total absence of workers’ unions which makes them silent spectators to preemptive measures so much so that most of the sacked are asked to stop working immediately and leave without any monetary compensation. 
• The remaining employees work under extremely stressful conditions without adequate safety measures. 
• It is the ironical way in which these workers are defined by the companies — a stark reflection of the fact that unions or any other forms of workers collectives do not play any role in the way they are classified, both in India and advanced markets. Workers in non-unionised sectors are going to pay dearly in the future. 

Way forward: 

• Given the sheer disregard with which labour policies are framed in countries such as India and the US,— two large economies where the business sector is infested with anti-union practices — the economic crisis triggered by Covid will become even more telling. 
• Hence, this calamity must come as a wake-up for workers usually reluctant to join or form unions, especially belonging to the Left parties, which seem to have given up on their aggressive enthusiasm in furthering working class goalsand have compromised along the way.

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Prelims Questions:

Q.1)With reference to the armed forces in coronavirus outbreak battle, consider the following statements:
1. The regulations permit civil authorities to requisition the Army for controlling law and order, maintaining essential services, assisting during natural calamities such as earthquakes, and any other type of help that may be needed by the civil authorities. 
2. The procedure for requisitioning armed forces is governed under ‘Aid to Civil Authorities’ under the guidelines laid in Instructions on Aid to the Civil Authorities by the Armed Forces, 1970; Regulations for the Army; and Manual of Indian Military Law. 

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer..............

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Mains Questions:
Q.1) The Covid-19 crisis has rendered workers vulnerable; they must organise. Comment.