Hind Mazdoor Sabha

Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS)
AbbreviationHMS
Formation29 December 1948
FounderBasawon Singh, Ashok Mehta, R.S. Ruikar, Maniben Kara, Shibnath Banerjee, R.A. Khedgikar, T.S. Ramanujam, V.S. Mathur, G.G. Mehta.
TypeTrade union
HeadquartersNew Delhi
Membership
3.3 million
LeaderHarbhajan Singh (General Secretary) & C.A. Rajasridhar (President)
AffiliationsITUC
Websitewww.hindmazdoorsabha.co.in

The Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS) was formed by the Socialists in 1948 but has little real connection with the Socialist Party. It is one of the least political and most pragmatic trade-union federations in India. The HMS is affiliated with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions.

History

The HMS was founded in Howrah in west Bengal on 29 December 1948, by socialists, Forward Bloc followers and independent unionists. Its founders included Basawon Singh (Sinha), Ashok Mehta, R.S. Ruikar, Maniben Kara, Shibnath Banerjee, R.A. Khedgikar, T.S. Ramanujam, V.S. Mathur, G.G. Mehta. R.S. Ruikar was elected president and Ashok Mehta general secretary. HMS absorbed the Royist Indian Federation of Labour and the Hind Mazdoor Panchayat, which was formed in 1948 by socialists leaving the increasingly communist dominated AITUC.[1] In March 1949, HMS claimed to have 380 affiliated unions with a combined membership of 618,802.[2][3]

Membership

According to provisional statistics from the Ministry of Labour, HMS had a membership of 3,342,213 in 2002.(13% of the total trade union membership in the country).[4][5]

All India Railwaymen's Federation, the largest trade union in the Indian Railways with a membership of 1.4 million is affiliated with Hind Mazdoor Sabha.[6][7] All India Port and Dock Workers Federation, the largest trade union representing workers at India's 12 major government-owned ports is also affiliated with the Hind Mazdoor Sabha.[8][9]

International affiliations

In 1949 HMS became a founding member of the ICFTU.[3] Currently, it is affiliated with the International Trade Union Confederation.

References

  1. ^ Sinha, P.R.N.; Sinha, Indubala; Shekhar, Seema (2006). Industrial Relations, Trade Unions, and Labour Legislation. Pearson Educational. pp. 79–80. ISBN 9788177588132.
  2. ^ Park, Richard L.. Labor and Politics in India, in Far Eastern Survey, Vol. 18, No. 16. (10 August 1949), pp. 181-187.
  3. ^ a b header3 Archived 28 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Aggregate data on membership of CTUOs 1989 and 2002 (Provisional)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 April 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2011.
  5. ^ indianexpress.com
  6. ^ Vikas Dhoot (29 June 2013). "Indian Railways headed for first indefinite strike in October". Economic Times..
  7. ^ "List of Federations". Hind Mazdoor Sabha. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  8. ^ Venkataraman, CS (1997). "Changes in Industrial Relation in Indian Ports". In Venkataraman, CS; Varma, Anil (eds.). Challenge of Change: Industrial Relations in Indian Industry. Allied Publishers. p. 454. ISBN 9788170236511. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  9. ^ P. Manoj. "Government planning to convert 12 of 13 Union govt-owned ports into companies". LiveMint. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  • ICTUR, ed. (2005). Trade Unions of the World (6th ed.). London, UK: John Harper Publishing. ISBN 0-9543811-5-7.