Labour has said the laws on striking may be loosened – to keep the unions sweet?
The headline change is an increase in the length of time a union will be allowed to strike after balloting members, from six months to a full year. This is said to be about lowering “administrative costs” on a ballot that is “very likely” to go the same way as the first.
Other changes include abolishing the requirement that 50 per cent of a workforce turns out to vote, and ending the rule that for “important public services” such as the NHS, 40 per cent of the workforce must have voted in favour of industrial action for it to go ahead.
And it is proposed that the current requirement for 10 per cent of a workforce to be in a union before it can apply to be recognised by employers should be reduced to two per cent, and existing rules that 40 per cent of a workforce should vote in favour of recognition should be abolished altogether.
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Labour ministers are saying making it easier for unions to organise should lead to a more co-operative relationship with employers, and should lessen the need for industrial action.
This Writer does not think that makes sense – unless it is in the same spirit of brinkmanship as the cold war, when the threat of deadly retaliation from one side was said to have kept the other from launching nuclear weapons.
If it is easier for unions to get employers to recognise them, for unions to organise strikes, and for longer periods of time, then it would be in employers’ best interests to keep union organisers happy by providing the best pay and working conditions possible.
This is what employers should be doing anyway, of course. The drawback is that it may allow unions to get greedy and make demands that employers cannot support if their business is to remain viable.
So it might be wise to strengthen the rules on negotiation and conciliation, in order to ensure that if employers say they can’t meet demands, they have to show persuasive reasons – and put all relevant facts on the table.
There has been a desperate need for unions to regain the bargaining power that has been removed from them by successive right-wing governments, so these proposals are forward steps. They just need to go in the right direction.
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Laws on striking may be loosened – to keep the unions sweet?
Labour has said the laws on striking may be loosened – to keep the unions sweet?
The headline change is an increase in the length of time a union will be allowed to strike after balloting members, from six months to a full year. This is said to be about lowering “administrative costs” on a ballot that is “very likely” to go the same way as the first.
Other changes include abolishing the requirement that 50 per cent of a workforce turns out to vote, and ending the rule that for “important public services” such as the NHS, 40 per cent of the workforce must have voted in favour of industrial action for it to go ahead.
And it is proposed that the current requirement for 10 per cent of a workforce to be in a union before it can apply to be recognised by employers should be reduced to two per cent, and existing rules that 40 per cent of a workforce should vote in favour of recognition should be abolished altogether.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
Labour ministers are saying making it easier for unions to organise should lead to a more co-operative relationship with employers, and should lessen the need for industrial action.
This Writer does not think that makes sense – unless it is in the same spirit of brinkmanship as the cold war, when the threat of deadly retaliation from one side was said to have kept the other from launching nuclear weapons.
If it is easier for unions to get employers to recognise them, for unions to organise strikes, and for longer periods of time, then it would be in employers’ best interests to keep union organisers happy by providing the best pay and working conditions possible.
This is what employers should be doing anyway, of course. The drawback is that it may allow unions to get greedy and make demands that employers cannot support if their business is to remain viable.
So it might be wise to strengthen the rules on negotiation and conciliation, in order to ensure that if employers say they can’t meet demands, they have to show persuasive reasons – and put all relevant facts on the table.
There has been a desperate need for unions to regain the bargaining power that has been removed from them by successive right-wing governments, so these proposals are forward steps. They just need to go in the right direction.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Join the uPopulus group at https://upopulus.com/groups/vox-political/
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
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