A note on new trends in unionisation in India

Abstract

This note is an initial exploration into the current phase of unionism in India. It argues that trade unionism in India has entered a new phase where as a strategy of contesting capital it focuses on the formation of broad social coalitions, to leverage proworker and pro-poor public policy. The rapid informalisation of the labour market has elicited new organisational players such as the National Centre For Labour (NCL) and the New Trade Union Initiative (NTUI). The note discusses how each has adopted very different strategies for protecting workers’ rights in the context of rapidly informalising labour market.