According to ILO statutes, an industrial action includes complaints filed in a labor industrial court for redress of retaliatory / discriminatory acts. Some actions legally question an administrative procedure, and employers may initiate them. To distinguish between official and unofficial action, you’ll need to evaluate the preceding formal and legal procedures.
Unresolved workplace conflicts always culminate in industrial action. There are three physical forms of action, namely:
- Strikes, where employees totally refuse to work.
- An industrial action short of a strike such as a go-slow, callout bans, working to rule, or an overtime ban.
- A lockout occurs when an employer stops employees from working (literally locks them out).
Difference Between Official and Unofficial Action
The table below lists seven distinct differences between official and unofficial industrial actions.
| Official Action | Unofficial Action |
| Industrial action is taken on behalf of all employees versus the employing company. | Action is usually out of personal reasons or to settle private matters with the employer OR an individual within the company. |
| A trade union follows all the legal requirements preceding an action, including a ballot for members to vote. Note: A simple majority of the members voting MUST support the industrial action. | A trade union doesn’t play by the rules. If during an official action an employee takes unauthorized steps outside the program, the action becomes unofficial. |
| Employees are fully protected by industrial action law { Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act, 1978 (EPCA)}, as long as they remain within the action’s limits. | Workers are not protected by industrial action law, and the employer is at liberty to invoke Section 9 {62A(2)} of ILO’s Employment Act of 1990. |
| The conflict relates to a trade dispute between workers and their direct employer. | A secondary industrial action in support of workers from another employer, OR acts in support of anyone dismissed for engaging in another unofficial action. |
| A prior, detailed notice about the action is given to the employer at least seven working days (depending on the country) and not more than 21 days before commencement. | There’s no notice to the employer about the industrial action, since many unofficial actions are unplanned. |
| There are many aspects in dispute, all included in a petition and the subsequent notice to industrial action. | Unofficial actions promote union labor practices only. |
| Official action is binding on the company, and there’s always a union involved. | Unofficial employee action is not binding on the company. Workers act without involving their union – a ‘wildcat strike’. |
Table 1.1: Difference between official and unofficial industrial action.
Did You Know?
Whether official or unofficial, in most countries strikes – and most other forms of industrial action – constitute repudiatory breaches of employment contracts for all involved workers under the law!
References
- Strikes and Industrial Actions – Acas.
- International Labor Organization Statutes on Official and Unofficial Action.
- Industrial Action Explained