Labour Laws and Practice · Law of Industrial Relations

Strikes, Lock-outs and Unfair Labour Practices under the IR Code

Updated 11 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, a worker cannot strike in breach of contract, and an employer cannot lock out, without 60-day-window notice, a 14-day wait, and staying clear of pending proceedings (Section 62). A strike or lock-out against these rules is illegal (Section 63) and attracts penalties (Section 86).

Understand Strikes, Lock-outs and Unfair Labour Practices

A strike is a stoppage of work by workers acting together. A lock-out is the employer's closing of the workplace or refusal to employ workers. Both are pressure tools in an industrial dispute. The Code does not ban them. It controls when they can be used, so that talks and conciliation get a fair chance first.

Section 62 sets the control. A worker in an industrial establishment cannot go on strike, in breach of contract, without notice given within sixty days before striking. The strike cannot start within fourteen days of giving notice, or before the date named in the notice. The same notice rules apply to the employer for a lock-out. The Code places the strike restriction on persons employed in an industrial establishment, so check the facts for that.

The second layer is the pendency bar. No strike or lock-out is allowed during conciliation proceedings before a conciliation officer and seven days after they end. It is also barred during Tribunal or National Industrial Tribunal proceedings and sixty days after. Arbitration proceedings carry the same sixty-day tail, where a notification has been issued under section 42(5). Finally, no strike or lock-out is allowed while a settlement or award is in operation on the matters it covers.

Section 63 then tells you when a strike or lock-out is illegal: if it starts in breach of section 62, or continues in breach of an order under section 42(7). There are two protections. An already-running strike or lock-out that was lawful at its start does not become illegal merely because a dispute is filed or referred, unless continuance was prohibited under section 42(7). And a lock-out in response to an illegal strike, or a strike in response to an illegal lock-out, is not illegal.

Unfair labour practices are acts listed in the Second Schedule. Section 84 bars employers, workers and trade unions, registered or not, from committing them. Section 86(5) punishes them with a fine.

Key rules to remember

Notice window for strike or lock-out: Notice given within 60 days before striking or locking out; action not within 14 days of notice; not before the date stated in the notice; Section 62(1)(a)-(c) for strikes and 62(2)(a)-(c) for lock-outs. All three conditions must be met.
Conciliation bar: No strike or lock-out during conciliation proceedings + 7 days after they conclude; Section 62(1)(d) and (2)(d).
Tribunal bar: No strike or lock-out during Tribunal or National Industrial Tribunal proceedings + 60 days after; Section 62(1)(e) and (2)(e).
Arbitration bar: No strike or lock-out during arbitration + 60 days after, where a notification is issued under section 42(5); Section 62(1)(f) and (2)(f). The notification condition is essential.
Settlement or award bar: No strike or lock-out while a settlement or award is in operation, on matters it covers; Section 62(1)(g) and (2)(g).
Existing strike or lock-out: No fresh notice needed if a strike or lock-out already exists; employer must report a lock-out or strike on the day it is declared to the specified authority; Section 62(3).
Employer reporting of notices: Report within 5 days to the appropriate Government or prescribed authority and the conciliation officer the number of notices received or given that day; Section 62(6).
Illegal strike or lock-out: Illegal if commenced in contravention of section 62, or continued in contravention of an order under section 42(7); Section 63(1).
Financial aid: No person shall knowingly spend money in direct furtherance or support of an illegal strike or lock-out; Section 64; penalty in section 86(16).
Penalties: Worker joining illegal strike: fine ₹1,000 to ₹10,000 or up to 1 month jail or both. Employer in illegal lock-out: fine ₹50,000 to ₹1,00,000 or up to 1 month jail or both. Instigator: fine ₹10,000 to ₹50,000 or up to 1 month or both. Financier: fine ₹10,000 to ₹50,000 or up to 1 month or both. Unfair labour practice: fine ₹10,000 to ₹2,00,000; repeat: ₹50,000 to ₹5,00,000 or up to 3 months or both; Section 86(13)-(16), (5) and (6).

How to solve Strikes, Lock-outs and Unfair Labour Practices questions

Use the same sequence for any problem on strikes, lock-outs or unfair labour practices. Provision first, then facts, then conclusion.

1Identify who acts: worker, employer, union or a third party. Identify whether it is a strike or a lock-out.
2Check the notice: was notice given, was it within sixty days before the action, and have fourteen days passed and the stated date arrived?
3Check the pendency bars: conciliation (plus 7 days), Tribunal (plus 60 days), arbitration under a section 42(5) notification (plus 60 days), and any settlement or award in operation.
4Check whether a strike or lock-out already existed. If so, notice is not needed, and the employer must report on the day it is declared.
5Apply section 63: is it illegal on either ground? Then test the exceptions: lawful at commencement and dispute filed later, or retaliation against an illegal act.
6State the consequences: penalty for workers, employer, instigators and financiers under section 86, and section 64 for financial aid.
7If an unfair labour practice is alleged, cite section 84 and the Second Schedule, and the fine in section 86(5) or (6).
8Write a one-line conclusion that answers the question asked.

Quickest way: Notice-bar-exception check

When to use it: For short case questions asking whether a strike or lock-out is legal.

Notice: given, within 60 days, 14 days elapsed?
Bar: conciliation, Tribunal, arbitration or settlement pending?
Exception: already existing, or retaliation against an illegal act?
Conclude: legal or illegal, then name the section 86 penalty.

Common mistakes in Strikes, Lock-outs and Unfair Labour Practices

Saying the 14-day period is the only requirement.
The 14-day figure is the one students remember from searches.
Fix: Also check that notice was given within sixty days before the action and that the stated date has passed. Then check the pendency bars.
Applying the same after-period to every bar.
Students blend 7 days and 60 days.
Fix: Conciliation: 7 days after. Tribunal or National Industrial Tribunal: 60 days after. Arbitration: 60 days after, only where a section 42(5) notification exists.
Calling a lock-out illegal when it is in response to an illegal strike.
Students check only the employer's own notice.
Fix: Section 63(3) says a lock-out declared in consequence of an illegal strike is not illegal. The same applies to a strike following an illegal lock-out.
Treating a lawful strike as illegal once the dispute is referred to a Tribunal.
Students read the pendency bar and forget section 63(2).
Fix: A strike already in existence when the application is filed or the dispute referred is not illegal on that account, if it was lawful at commencement and continuance is not prohibited under section 42(7).
Ignoring those who fund or incite an illegal strike.
Students focus only on workers and employers.
Fix: Section 64 and section 86(15)-(16) reach any person who instigates, incites or knowingly funds an illegal strike or lock-out.
Confusing penalties for illegal strike, lock-out and unfair labour practice.
The sub-sections of section 86 look alike.
Fix: Learn the three bands: worker ₹1,000-₹10,000; employer lock-out ₹50,000-₹1,00,000; unfair labour practice ₹10,000-₹2,00,000.

Worked examples

Example 1

Workers at Bharat Components Ltd., an industrial establishment, give strike notice on 1 March and walk out on 8 March. No proceedings are pending. Is the strike legal? What follows?

Show the solution

Notice was given within 60 days before striking, but the strike began after only 7 days.
Section 62(1)(b) bars a strike within fourteen days of giving notice.
No exception applies. No strike was already in existence and it is not a retaliation against an illegal lock-out.
Under section 63(1)(i), a strike commenced in contravention of section 62 is illegal.
A worker who commences or continues it faces a fine of ₹1,000 to ₹10,000 or imprisonment up to one month or both under section 86(13).

Answer: The strike is illegal because it began within fourteen days of the notice. Participating workers are liable under section 86(13).

Example 2

A union at Kaveri Textiles declares a strike without notice. The next day the employer locks out the workers without notice. Conciliation is not pending. A union treasurer spends ₹40,000 on food for the strikers. Examine the legality and consequences.

Show the solution

The strike began without notice, contravening section 62(1)(a), so it is illegal under section 63(1)(i).
Under section 63(3), a lock-out declared in consequence of an illegal strike is not deemed illegal. The employer is not liable merely for the missing notice.
Section 64 prohibits knowingly spending money in direct furtherance or support of an illegal strike.
The treasurer knowingly funded the illegal strike. Section 86(16) applies: fine ₹10,000 to ₹50,000 or imprisonment up to one month or both.
Striking workers face section 86(13).

Answer: The strike is illegal, the lock-out is not, and the treasurer is punishable under section 86(16) as well as section 64.

Exam tips

Draw the answer as provision, facts, conclusion. Quote section 62 and 63 by number.
Write the numbers exactly: 60 days, 14 days, 7 days, 60 days, 5 days.
In case questions, list the facts against each condition of section 62 before concluding.
Always check the section 63(2) and 63(3) exceptions before declaring a strike or lock-out illegal.
For unfair labour practices, cite section 84 and the Second Schedule, then the fine in section 86(5) and (6). Do not list Schedule items unless you are sure of them.

Practice questions from Law of Industrial Relations

Strikes, Lock-outs and Unfair Labour Practices in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

CS ExecutiveStrikes, Lock-outs, Lay-off and Retrenchment

Strikes, Lock-outs and Unfair Labour Practices: frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a strike and a lock-out?

A strike is a stoppage of work by workers acting together. A lock-out is the employer closing the workplace or refusing to employ workers. Both are subject to the same notice and pendency rules in section 62.

Is 14 days notice enough for a strike under the IR Code?

No. Notice must be given within sixty days before striking, the strike cannot start within fourteen days of notice or before the stated date, and no bar such as pending conciliation must apply.

When is a strike illegal under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020?

A strike is illegal if commenced in contravention of section 62, or continued in contravention of an order under section 42(7). Section 63 also gives exceptions for already-running strikes and for retaliation against an illegal lock-out.

Who can be punished for an illegal strike?

Workers who commence or continue it, persons who instigate or incite it, and persons who knowingly fund it. The Code prescribes separate fines and imprisonment for each under section 86.