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Justified And Unjustified Strikes
If a strike is in contravention of the above provisions, it is an illegal strike. Since strike is the essence of collective bargaining if workers resort to strike. To press for their legitimate rights, then it is justified. Whether the strike is justified or unjustified will depend upon the fairness and reasonableness of the demands of workers.
Thus, if workmen go on strike without contravening statutory requirements, in support of their demands, the strike will be justified. In the beginning, the strike was justified but later on workmen. Indulged in violence, it will become unjustified.
Under the Act, 1960:
Their Workmen, (1960), the Supreme Court held that the law has made a distinction between a strike. Which is illegal and one which is not, but it has not made a distinction between them.
This distinction is not warranted by the Act and is wholly misconceived, especially in the case of employees in a public utility service. Therefore, an illegal strike is always unjustified.
A strike is legal if no violation to the provision of the statute is there. It is well settled that in order to entitle the workmen to wages for the period of the strike. Also, the strike should be legal as well as justified. Again a strike cannot be said to be unjustified unless the reasons for it are entirely perverse or unreasonable.
Whether a particular strike’s justification is there or not is a question of fact which has to be judged. In the light of the facts and circumstances of each case. It is also well settled that the use of force or violence or acts of sabotage resorted to by the workmen during a strike disentitled them to wages for the strike period.
Where pending an industrial dispute the workers went on strike the strike thus being illegal, the lock-out that followed becomes legal, a defensive measure.
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