A spontaneous strike, caused by workers being impatient, reacting harshly to their employers, or dropping their tools while on duty, is not considered a legal strike. Meeting the conditions of a leading entity is not enough, organization must also be demonstrated through the collective of workers making demands, through the process of preparing for the strike.
The strike leader can be an organization representing workers such as a trade union or a labor union, or it can be just a few workers who are elected and assigned to lead the strike by the labor collective. Normally, the laws of countries often recognize trade unions and labor unions; more flexibly, they recognize representatives of the labor collective as legal elements to lead strikes. In reality, the strike leadership is much more diverse and rich. Many countries consider this one of the criteria to evaluate the legitimacy of a strike.
In the laws of many countries, strike preparation procedures are regulated quite strictly. That shows the organization of a strike. To achieve the ultimate goal of putting pressure on employers to fulfill their demands, the labor collective must have relatively adequate preparation in terms of both human and material resources. Collecting opinions from the labor collective, preparing demands, choosing strike options, sending strike notices to employers or related entities... are necessary and extremely important tasks for a legal strike that promises many victories. No strike does not go through a preparation stage; it can be prepared carefully and thoroughly; it can also be prepared carelessly, hastily and only formally. Organization is one of the mandatory requirements in the provisions of national law. However, good organization will create opportunities for the labor collective to achieve "a possible result" as expected.
* Strikes aim to achieve the demands of the rights and interests of the labor collective.
The purpose of a strike is to put pressure on employers to fulfill demands related to the rights and interests of the labor collective, but putting pressure does not mean causing damage or threatening to cause damage to employers. The viewpoint of the International Labor Organization as well as many countries is to aim for and support peaceful strikes, on the basis of goodwill, minimizing damage to all parties. When conducting a strike, what the labor collective aims for is to satisfy the demands that they themselves consider legitimate. However, there are many ways for labor collectives to exercise the right to strike. There are peaceful ways to strike, but there are also excessive manifestations, causing material and spiritual damage; there are even very serious damages not only to the enterprise where the collective strikes but also directly affecting the economy and society of a country. Whether or not this type of strike is recognized depends on the political and legislative viewpoints of each country. However, legal corridors and legal barriers seem to be unable to prevent workers from striking.
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Workers' work stoppage is only an external expression of their demands for rights and benefits. The ultimate purpose of the work stoppage is to put pressure on employers to fulfill the demands related to the rights and benefits of the labor collective. The subject of pressure in a strike can be the employer in the enterprise where the labor collective is on strike, or the owner of another enterprise (in the case of a support strike) or the State in the case of the State issuing policies or laws that affect the interests of workers or the labor community. Although this form of struggle does not originate from a collective labor dispute, according to the concept of the ILO and some other countries (such as France, Germany), it is still considered a strike.
1.1.1.3. The nature of the strike
* From a socio-economic perspective
Strikes are understood as the economic and social rights of workers; they are economic measures of workers to exert pressure to achieve certain demands related to economic or professional interests. Specifically, the demands revolve around the issue of income (salary, bonuses, allowances), working hours, rest hours, social insurance, labor protection and other benefits... in which increasing income is always a hot issue, the main cause of many strikes. Workers go on strike to demand that employers must properly implement the provisions on obligations according to law or to establish a new labor agreement with more favorable terms for workers.
Strikes are considered the most powerful weapon of the labor collective; they are used when the parties fail to negotiate a settlement. Strikes can cause or threaten to cause economic damage to the employer such as: stopping production, disrupting business management, reducing productivity and product quality; moreover, this phenomenon can also affect the reputation of the business in the market. Therefore, the employer is forced to accept the demands (usually economic demands) of the labor collective in exchange for other larger and more long-term economic benefits.
* From a legal perspective
Strike is a right of workers recognized by law. Some countries recognize the right to strike in the highest legal document, the Constitution, such as the Federal Republic of Germany and France; the vast majority of other countries recognize the right to strike in the Labor Code or legal documents of equivalent value, such as the Labor Relations Act of Thailand (1975), the Law on Procedures for Settlement of Collective Labor Disputes of the Republic of
Russian Federation (1995). Vietnam's 2006 Labor Code also officially recognizes strikes; accordingly, a strike is a temporary, voluntary and organized stoppage of work by a labor collective to resolve a collective labor dispute.
The law gives workers the right to strike, which means they have the right to stop work collectively, the right to put down tools, the right to gather forces to fight for their rights before the employer. When conflicts and disagreements cannot be resolved through negotiation and conciliation; the labor collective has the right to use the most effective tool of struggle, which is a strike. It must be admitted that most strikes originate from collective labor disputes, but it cannot be affirmed that strikes are always associated with and are the product of collective labor disputes. There are strikes that take place completely on the basis of collective labor disputes, such as support strikes. It also cannot be affirmed that the purpose of a strike is to resolve collective labor disputes. Strikes are closely related to collective labor disputes, and as mentioned above, strikes mainly originate from this type of labor dispute. However, labor collectives only strike when labor disputes have become too tense, and conflicts between the parties cannot be resolved by peaceful means, negotiation, and conciliation. A strike is the next step of a collective labor dispute, occurring when the resolution of a collective labor dispute fails, but a strike is not a form of labor dispute, nor is it a way to resolve a labor dispute. These are two completely different phenomena in nature. In essence, a strike is a form of collective labor stopping work en masse or in parts to put pressure on the employer to achieve the ultimate goal of ensuring their rights and interests. Therefore, when workers realize that their rights and interests are being violated, when they realize that a new agreement is needed to ensure the established relationship with the employer, when their demands (which they consider legitimate) are not satisfied, they choose to strike. Obviously
Obviously, this is one of the ways that the labor collective exerts pressure to achieve the ultimate goal of demanding the guarantee of rights and benefits. This guarantee can be demonstrated through the employer's compliance with the provisions of labor laws, internal regulations or collective agreements (for strikes on rights); it can also be the birth of a new collective labor agreement with provisions that have similar or nearly identical content to the demands of the labor collective in the strike on benefits. Whether it is a strike on rights or on benefits, the goal that the workers aim for is often economic demands. If it is a strike for rights, the labor collective requires the employer to properly implement the terms committed in the contract, in the internal regulations, labor agreements and more broadly, and the provisions of labor laws on wages, bonuses, other working conditions, regimes such as social insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance, etc. If it is a strike for interests, the labor collective wishes to establish a new labor agreement with the employer in which there may be legitimate demands but there is no solid legal basis because it is not yet stipulated in the law or no legal agreement has been recorded.
From different perspectives, we have different understandings of strikes. The actual, objective nature of strikes is different from the signs recognized in the legal aspect. And strikes from an economic and social perspective are also viewed differently from political and legal strikes. Some countries recognize strikes as a constitutional right, a type of political right, not only of workers, but some countries only recognize strikes as a statutory right, an economic and social right that can only be exercised by workers. Thus, a strike is a complete stoppage of work (a complete stoppage of work), organized by the labor collective with the aim of putting pressure on the employer to implement the demands related to the rights and interests of the labor collective . However, the stoppage of work in a strike is only a temporary stoppage of work.
1.1.2. Effects of strikes
1.1.2.1. Positive influence
Strike is one of the rights of workers. Recognizing this right means that the State has given them a means to protect themselves, mobilize collective strength, create power and influence in relations with employers. In other words, the great significance that strikes bring is the democratic atmosphere in labor relations. This is important for workers in circumstances where they are often in a weaker position compared to employers.
The democratic atmosphere in the enterprise creates an equal relationship, the voice of the employees becomes more important, and their influence on the employer also changes. Equality and democracy create conditions for the labor collective to frankly express their thoughts, aspirations, demands, and wishes to the employer; thus, compromise also becomes easier and more favorable. Labor relations are maintained on the basis of a balance of interests between the parties. Having democracy and being equal with the employer makes labor relations different in nature.
Strikes also give workers a sense of ownership - a sense of ownership in maintaining and developing labor relations. As mentioned above, workers are often in a weak position, dependent on the decisions of employers. With the need for jobs and income, workers often limit their proposals and legitimate demands for benefits; even when employers violate their labor obligations. Strikes are actions of the labor collective, a way to connect the collective strength of workers to protect themselves from the pressure created by employers. Through strikes, workers can frankly express their wishes, make demands that employers must satisfy in order to have a possible result. This is the way that workers or organizations representing them express their will to be owners. No
Not only does a strike demonstrate a sense of ownership, through it, workers also become more mature in their legal awareness, and better understand their rights and obligations in labor relations within the enterprise.
Strikes are a channel for workers to become more mature in their legal awareness, to better understand their rights and obligations when participating in labor relations (although this is a channel that neither workers nor employers want). Right from the initial stage of preparing for a strike - the stage of gathering forces for a strike, workers have been propagandized and disseminated about labor laws through strike leaders, specifically analyzing rights and obligations, pointing out violations by employers; thereby, workers are aware of their rights as well as their obligations to perform and accurately determine the behavior and methods of striking.
1.1.2.2. Negative effects
Besides the positive effects, strikes also have inevitable negative impacts not only on labor relations but also on the economy and society.
The first thing that can be clearly seen when a strike occurs is the economic damage to the business and the workers themselves. The strike phenomenon causes production and business activities to stagnate, directly affecting the business plan, reducing labor productivity, and reducing economic benefits is inevitable. In addition, we must take into account indirect damages such as damages due to contract breaches, loss of contracts, damage to the reputation of the business in the market... This reality immediately affects the interests of the workers. That is, salaries, bonuses and other welfare regimes. It is not certain that the benefits that the labor collective enjoys after the strike are commensurate with the benefits they would have enjoyed if they had not gone on strike.
Strikes occur and leave cracks in the relationship between the labor collective or their organization and the business owner. Strikes reduce
The trust between the parties involved in the labor relations, between the workers participating in the strike and the group of workers not participating in the strike, requires a necessary period of time to restore the situation. That is not to mention the case of a strike but does not bring about the positive results as initially desired by the labor collective.
Strikes have a direct and serious impact on the investment environment. Whether strikes are legal or illegal, they have negative impacts on this environment. Their influence is no longer limited to a business, a region, or an area, but has an impact on the whole country. Strikes show the stability or instability of the investment environment. This explains why many governments seek ways to limit strikes, especially illegal strikes.
In addition, we must take into account the consequences that strikes cause to society. There are many strikes that cause the transportation system to stagnate and become congested; disrupt public order, economic and political life, and social security. Strikes not only leave unpredictable consequences for business owners and each worker, but also leave undesirable consequences for the whole society.
From a legal perspective, strikes also have certain consequences. When there is the participation of competent authorities and a court ruling based on the actions of each party related to the strike, the parties may be subject to administrative responsibility, disciplinary responsibility, or even criminal responsibility according to current law. However, it is necessary for each party to fulfill its responsibilities before the law, as a deterrent, to educate the awareness of compliance and strict observance of labor laws, and moreover, this is a measure to protect their legitimate rights.
Thus, strikes are of great significance to workers, and are a sharp tool chosen by the labor collective to use when necessary to protect their rights.