The Sivika Tech. Ltd. is an IT-enabled services company established in 2012 at Gurgaon. The company employed 550 workers, including 350 software developers and technical staff (monthly salaries ₹ 30,000–₹ 80,000), 150 ad

CS Professional · Labour Laws and Practice · PYQS · June 2026
The Sivika Tech. Ltd. is an IT-enabled services company established in 2012 at Gurgaon. The company employed 550 workers, including 350 software developers and technical staff (monthly salaries ₹ 30,000–₹ 80,000), 150 administrative and support staff (monthly salaries ₹ 8,000–₹ 18,000), 50 managerial and supervisory personnel (monthly salaries ₹ 60,000–₹ 1,50,000). Due to global economic recession, Covid-19 outbreak and loss of major client contracts, the company faces severe financial distress in January 2021. The Board of Directors decides to implement cost cutting measures including workforce reduction, salary restructuring, and operational downsizing. The management identifies 120 permanent employees for retrenchment (employed since 2013), including: 50 junior developers (average service: 3 years, average monthly salary : ₹ 35,000), 40 administrative staff (average service: 5 years, average monthly salary: ₹ 12,000), 30 senior developers (average service: 7 years, average monthly salary: ₹ 55,000) without stating the reason in the termination letter. The company issued termination letters on 1st October, 2022 effective immediately, offering 15 days' salary for every completed year of service, one month's salary as notice pay, no prior consultation with workers or trade union. Affected permanent employees approach the Regional Labour Commissioner alleging illegal retrenchment. During the retrenchment process, these 120 staff members went on strike immediately receiving the termination letter on 1st October, 2022 without informing to the management. These 120 staff members did not file their complaint to the Works Committee and the matter was also not referred to the Conciliation Officer. They directly filed the matter before the Industrial Tribunal on 1st January, 2023, the Industrial Tribunal passed an Award on 25th August 2025 without holding a proper enquiry. While passing an Award it was also found that the Labour Audit is pending since last two years, the Labour Inspector have not audited the company regarding various statutory compliances, the company license was also due for renewal and found irregularities in labour compliances. But during the pendency of proceedings, the management changed some service conditions which were unconnected with the dispute, without serving the notice to the workers. The management made the changes in their standing orders too without informing to the workers, and to the appropriate authority. The management made the alteration in the payment of subsistence allowance, the change was that if any workmen is suspended by the employer where the investigation or inquiry and the matter is pending before the court only nominal charges i.e. only 30 percent, will be paid to the workmen during the pendency of the proceedings. When the workers got to know about the changes they threatened to the management and filed multiple cases against the management. Do employees have an absolute legal right to go on strike? The employees of Sivika Tech. Ltd. went on strike without serving the requisite notice to the management or the appropriate government. Will this act be considered legal or illegal under The Industrial Relations Code, 2020? Substantiate your answer with relevant legal provisions.

Answer & Explanation:

No, employees do not have an absolute legal right to go on strike. The right to strike is a statutory right regulated by the provisions of the Industrial Relations Code, 2020. Workers can resort to a strike only in accordance with the conditions prescribed under the Code. Any strike undertaken in violation of these statutory requirements becomes an illegal strike. Section 62 of the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, prescribed that no person employed in an industrial establishment shall go on strike, in breach of contract- without giving to the employer notice of strike, within 60 days before striking; or within 14 days of giving such notice; or before the expiry of the date of strike specified in any such notice; or during the pendency of any conciliation proceedings before a conciliation officer and seven days after the conclusion of such proceedings; or during the pendency of proceedings before a Tribunal or a National Industrial Tribunal and sixty days, after the conclusion of such proceedings; or during the pendency of arbitration proceedings before an arbitrator and 60 days after the conclusion of such proceedings, where a notification has been issued under sub-section (5) of section 42; or during any period in which a settlement or award is in operation, in respect of any of the matters covered by the settlement or award. The notice of strike under this section shall not be necessary where there is already in existence a strike, but the employer shall send intimation of such strike on the day on which it is declared, to such authority as may be specified by the appropriate Government either generally or for a particular area or for a particular class of services. Section 63(1)(i) further states that, a strike shall be illegal if it is commenced or declared in contravention of section 62. The employees of Sivika Tech. Ltd. failed to comply with the procedure prescribed under Sections 62 of the Industrial Relations Code, 2020. They went on strike immediately upon receiving their termination letters, without serving a valid notice period to the employer. Consequently, the strike is held to be illegal under the provisions of the Code.

Topics: Industrial Relations Code, 2020

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