Explainer · Labour and Employment · Industrial Disputes
Industrial Disputes Under the Industrial Relations Code 2020
An industrial dispute is a disagreement between an employer and workers, or between groups of workers, about employment, terms of service or conditions of work, and from 21 November 2025 it is governed in India by the Industrial Relations Code 2020, one of the four labour codes now in force. The Code consolidates and replaces the old law, including the Industrial Disputes Act 1947, and sets out how a dispute is raised, conciliated and decided, and when a strike or lock-out is lawful. Because the change is recent, a transitional caveat applies: many State rules are still being framed and proceedings already pending under the old Act continue under transitional provisions. This guide explains what counts as an industrial dispute under the Code, the resolution machinery, the strike and lock-out rules, and how the transition works. Last verified October 2026.
- Governing law: the Industrial Relations Code 2020, in force from 21 November 2025, governs industrial disputes and replaces the Industrial Disputes Act 1947.
- Machinery: Works Committee and Grievance Redressal Committee at the workplace, then conciliation, then a two-member Industrial Tribunal, with a National Industrial Tribunal for national matters.
- Strikes and lock-outs: require advance notice across industrial establishments and are barred during conciliation and tribunal proceedings and for a period after.
- Transitional caveat: State rules are still being framed and pending Industrial Disputes Act proceedings continue, so confirm the current position for your State.
01What counts as an industrial dispute
Under the Industrial Relations Code 2020, an industrial dispute is broadly a dispute or difference between employers and workers, or among workers, connected with the employment or non-employment, the terms of employment, or the conditions of labour of any person. It also expressly covers a dispute arising out of the discharge, dismissal, retrenchment or termination of an individual worker, which can be raised as a dispute in its own right.
In practice, disputes fall into familiar groups:
- Individual disputes: a worker’s dismissal, discharge or retrenchment.
- Collective disputes: wages, bonus, working conditions or recognition, raised by workers or a union.
- Rights and interest disputes: disagreements about existing entitlements, or about new terms being sought.
For the wider picture of what the Code changes, see the Industrial Relations Code 2020 overview and the new labour codes overview.
02The dispute resolution machinery
The Code sets out a sequence of bodies meant to resolve a dispute before it reaches a tribunal, and to resolve grievances at the workplace first.
| Body | Role | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Works Committee | A joint employer and worker committee to promote good relations and settle day-to-day issues | In establishments with a larger workforce, as notified |
| Grievance Redressal Committee | Handles individual worker grievances inside the establishment | In establishments above the notified worker threshold |
| Conciliation Officer | Mediates between the parties and, if settlement fails, reports to the government | Once a dispute is referred or raised |
| Industrial Tribunal | Adjudicates disputes that conciliation does not settle | After conciliation fails or on reference |
| National Industrial Tribunal | Decides disputes of national importance or across States | When constituted by the Central Government |
The intent is that most matters settle at the workplace or in conciliation, with the tribunal as the adjudicating forum of last resort. For the practical steps, see how to handle an industrial dispute.
03The Industrial Tribunal
A significant structural change is the Industrial Tribunal. The Code replaces the earlier two-tier structure of Labour Courts and Industrial Tribunals with Industrial Tribunals constituted by the appropriate Government, and a tribunal ordinarily sits as a two-member body, combining a judicial member and an administrative member. For disputes of national importance, or those affecting establishments in more than one State, the Central Government may constitute a National Industrial Tribunal.
A worker can, in defined circumstances, approach the tribunal directly in a dispute about discharge, dismissal, retrenchment or termination, after the required steps, rather than depending entirely on a government reference. The tribunal’s award is the binding adjudication of the dispute, subject to the Code’s provisions on enforcement and challenge.
04Strikes and lock-outs
The Code tightens and standardises the rules on industrial action. Broadly, it now requires advance notice of a strike or lock-out across industrial establishments, not only public utilities as under the older scheme, and it prohibits a strike or lock-out while conciliation or tribunal proceedings are on and for a defined period after they conclude.
- Notice: no strike or lock-out without giving the required advance notice, with the action confined to a window after the notice.
- Prohibited periods: during conciliation and tribunal proceedings, and for a set period afterwards.
- Illegal action: a strike or lock-out that breaches these rules is illegal under the Code, with consequences for those who take part.
The Code pushes disputes toward notice, conciliation and adjudication, and narrows the space for sudden industrial action. The exact notice periods and thresholds for an establishment turn on the Code and the State rules.
05The transition from the 1947 Act
The four labour codes came into force on 21 November 2025, and the Industrial Relations Code 2020 now governs industrial disputes in place of the Industrial Disputes Act 1947. But the change is recent, so a transitional caveat is important.
- State rules are still being framed. Much of the Code’s operation depends on rules and notifications by the appropriate Government, and these are at different stages across States.
- Pending proceedings continue. Disputes and proceedings already pending under the old Act generally continue under transitional provisions rather than lapsing.
- Thresholds and definitions have moved. Several thresholds changed under the Code, so an old understanding of the 1947 Act should not be applied without checking the current position.
Because of this, confirm the exact rule, threshold or notice period for your establishment and State before you act, and treat older material framed around the 1947 Act with care.
06Where Claw fits
Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.
For industrial disputes specifically, Claw helps on the research and tracking side rather than giving legal advice. You can search 30 crore+ judgments, with Supreme Court decisions from 1950 and High Court decisions from 1990, in under 5 seconds, to see how courts and tribunals have read a point, keeping in mind that recent decisions under the Industrial Relations Code 2020 are still building while the older case law sits under the Industrial Disputes Act 1947. Once a dispute is on, Claw tracks cases, awards and hearings across 9,102 courts, benches and forums, including the industrial tribunals, so an employer or a legal team can follow a matter by party name wherever it is filed, and can check a company’s labour-dispute exposure across forums. Claw does not use your case documents to train its AI models, and a search result is information to verify, not legal advice on any dispute. You can create a FREE Claw account to run that research and tracking.
To see a company’s labour-dispute exposure, run a case search across labour courts and industrial tribunals, or check a company’s labour-dispute exposure.
07Sources and further reading
- India Code (the Industrial Relations Code 2020 text): indiacode.nic.in
- Ministry of Labour and Employment (the labour codes and rules): labour.gov.in
- eCourts (tribunal and court case status): ecourts.gov.in
- Claw: clawlaw.in
This page is general information for an Indian audience, not legal advice. The Code and its State rules are still settling, so confirm the current rule, threshold and notice period for your establishment and State before acting.
08Frequently asked questions
Which law governs industrial disputes in India now?
From 21 November 2025, the Industrial Relations Code 2020 governs industrial disputes, as one of the four labour codes now in force. It replaces the Industrial Disputes Act 1947, along with the Trade Unions Act 1926 and the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act 1946, consolidating them into a single Code. A transitional caveat applies, because State rules are still being framed.
How is an industrial dispute resolved under the Code?
The Code sets a sequence: a Works Committee and a Grievance Redressal Committee aim to settle issues at the workplace, a Conciliation Officer then mediates, and if conciliation fails the dispute goes to a two-member Industrial Tribunal for adjudication. A National Industrial Tribunal decides disputes of national importance or those spanning more than one State.
What changed about labour courts and tribunals?
The Code replaces the earlier two-tier structure of Labour Courts and Industrial Tribunals with Industrial Tribunals constituted by the appropriate Government, ordinarily sitting as a two-member body with a judicial member and an administrative member. This is a structural change from the position under the Industrial Disputes Act 1947.
When is a strike legal under the Industrial Relations Code 2020?
Broadly, the Code requires advance notice of a strike or lock-out across industrial establishments, confines the action to a window after the notice, and prohibits it during conciliation and tribunal proceedings and for a set period after. A strike or lock-out that breaches these rules is illegal. The exact notice periods and thresholds turn on the Code and the applicable State rules, so confirm them before acting.
What happens to disputes already pending under the old Act?
Proceedings and disputes already pending under the Industrial Disputes Act 1947 generally continue under the transitional provisions rather than lapsing, while new matters fall under the Industrial Relations Code 2020. Because the Code and its State rules are still settling, it is important to confirm the current rule and the status of any pending matter before relying on an older understanding.