THEORIES OF LABOUR WELFARE The form of labor welfare activities is flexible, elastic and differs from time totime,

region to region, industry to industry and country to country dependingu p o n t h e v a l u e s y s t e m , level of education, social customs, and degree o f industrialization and general standard of the socio-economic development of thenation. Seven theories constituting the conceptual frame work of labour welfareactivities are the following:The Police Theory : This is based on the contention that a minimum standardof welf are is n ecessary for labou rers. Here th e assu mp tion is that withou t po licing , that is, withou t co mp u lsion, e mp lo yers do n ot p rov id e ev en th e minimum facilities for workers. Apparently, this theory assumes that man isselfish and self centered and always tries to achieve his own ends, even at the Cost of the welfare of other According to this theory, owners and managers of industrial undertakings getmany opportunities for exploitation of labour. Hence, the state has to interveneto provide minimum standard of welfare to the working class. The Religious Theory : This is based on the concept that man is essentially "ar elig ious ani mal." Even tod ay, man y acts of man are related to religious s e n t i m e n t s a n d b e l i e f s . T h e s e r e l i g i o u s feelings sometimes prompt an e m p l o y e r t o t a k e u p welfare activities in the expectation of f u t u r e emancipation either in this life or after it. The Philanthropic Theory : This theory is based on man's love for mankind.Philanthropy means "Loving mankind." Man is believed to have an instinctiveurge by which he strives to remove the suffering of others and promote their well-being. In fact, the labour welfare movement

began in the early years of the industrial revolution with the support of philanthropists. The Trusteeship Theory : This is also called th e Patern alistic Th eo ry of Labour Welfare. According to this the industrialist or employer holds the totalindustrial estate, properties, and profits accruing from them in a trust. In other wo rd s, th e emp lo yer shou ld ho ld the indu strial assets fo r hi mself , fo r th e benefit of his workers, and also for society. The main emphasis of this theoryis that employers should provide funds on an ongoing basis for the well-beingof their employees. The Placating Theory : This theory is based on the fact that the labour groupsare becoming demanding and militant and are more conscious of their rightsand privileges than ever before. Their demand for higher wages and better standards of living cannot be ignored. According to this theory, timely and periodical acts of labour welfare can appease the workers. They are some kindof pacifiers which come with a friendly gesture. Th e Pu blic Relation Th eo ry : T h i s t h e o r y p r o v i d e s t h e b a s i s f o r a n atmosphere of goodwill between labour and management, and also betweenmanagement and the public, labour welfare programmes under this theory,work as a sort of an advertisement and help an organization to project itsgood image and build up and promote good and healthy public relations. The Functional Theory : This is also called th e Efficien cy Theory. Here, w e l f a r e work is used as a means to secure, preserve and d e v e l o p t h e efficiency and productivity of labour, It is obvious that if an employer takesgood care of his workers, they will tend to become more efficient and will Social Liability of Industry

: Industry, according to this principle, has an o bligation o r du ty to ward s its emp lo yees to look af ter th eir welf are. Th econstitution of India also emphasizes this aspect of labour welfare. Impact on Efficiency : This plays an important role in welfare services, andis b ased on th e relation ship between welfare and efficien cy, though it isdifficult to measure this relationship. Programmes for housing, educationand training, the provision of balanced diet and family planning measuresare some of the important programmes of labour welfare which increases theeff iciency of th e wo rk ers, esp ecially in und erd evelop ed o r d evelop ing countries. Increase in Personality : The development of the human personality is givenh ere as th e go al of industrial welf are wh ich, accordin g to this p rincip le, should counteract the baneful effects of the industrial system. Therefore, it isnecessary to implement labour welfare services. Both inside and outside thefactory, that is, provide intra-mural and extramural labour welfare services. Totality of Welfare : This emp h asizes th at th e con cept of lab ou r welfare must spread throughout the hierarchy of an organization. Employees at alllevels must accept this total concept of labour welfare programme will never really get off the ground. Co-ordination or Integration : This plays an important role in the successof welfare services. From this angle, a co-ordinate approach will promote ahealthy development of the worker in his work, home and community. Thisi s essential for the sake of harmony and continuity in l a b o u r w e l f a r e services. 28

Democratic Values : The co -op eration of th e wo rker is th e basis of this p r i n c i p l e . C o n s u l t a t i o n w i t h , a n d t h e

a g r e e m e n t o f w o r k e r s i n , t h e formulation and implementation of labour welfare services are v e r y necessary for their success. This principle is based on the assumption thatthe worker is "a mature and rational individual." Industrial democracy is thed riv ing fo rce h ere. Wo rk ers also d ev elo p a sen se of p rid e when they are made to feel that labour welfare programmes are created by them and for them. Responsibility : This recognizes the fact that both employers and workersare responsible for labour welfare. Trade unions, too, are involved in these programmes in healthy manner, for basically labour welfare belongs to thedomain of trade union activity. Further, when responsibility is shared bydifferent groups, labour welfare work becomes simpler and easier. Accountability : This may also be called the Principle of Evaluation. Here, one responsible person gives an assessment or evaluation of existing welfareservices on a periodical basis to a higher authority. This is very necessary,f o r t h e n o n e c a n j u d g e a n d a n a l y z e t h e s u c c e s s o f l a b o u r w e l f a r e programmes. Timely : The timeliness of any service helps in its success. To identify thelabour problem and to discover what kind of help is necessary to solve it andwhen to provide this help are all very necessary in planning labour welfare programmes. Timely action in the proper direction is essential in any kind of social work. 29