Skip to Content

Strike law changes.

New Procedure coming into place in order to go on strike.

As we have reported for some time the government is pushing ahead with plans to reform the strike laws, plans that should be passed this year.

Some of the biggest changes are to the strike ballot rules, changes that I am sure will see unions adapt the way strike ballots are conducted, the new proposals ask that there should be a 50% turnout for a strike ballot, current rules do not require a threshold to be achieved.

In core public service sectors, such as education, 40% of all those able to vote must support any action and unions will not be able to use the results of historic ballots to take action.

The government also plans to allow temporary workers to be able to cover for staff on strike.

It will be interesting to see what happens next as changing these rules will make strike action almost impossible, mainly in the public sector.

Postal strike ballots in the public sector normally receive a fairly poor response, under the new laws not only does it need to exceed 50%, a figure which has never been achieved, but 80% of that figure need to vote for action.

So what happens next; the government put in place reforms that make a strike almost impossible because of the new voting rules and if a strike does happen then the workforce can be replaced with temporary staff, I can see trouble ahead.

The right to strike is a very important one and many positive changes come about through strike action, but at the same time, the government is right in saying that strikes should result from a clear decision from the workers, but the government should not be able to tighten up on ballots without allowing unions to change the way ballots are conducted, the use of electronic voting and secret ballots should be commonplace.

I am sure logic will prevail, the government will be sensible to allow unions to evolve and adopt new technologies, whilst the passing of this law will make headlines, those headlines will be much bigger and more damaging to the government if the unions test the laws and get public sympathy because the laws are highlighted as draconian.

Strike law changes.
Image Description
related news
recent articles
Gig Economy - Rights for workers.

Hermes become the first major company to make concessions to 'Gig..

link

Restrictive Covenants

Restrictive covenants - If you happen across a restrictive covenant in a contract, what is it and why is it in place?..

Employment law for Children

There are clearly defined rules about when a child can work and their hours of employment, this article sets out the laws to be followed by Employers of childre..

Redundancy and Redundancy Pay.

Redundancy and Redundancy Pay.
You may have rights when you are being made redundant which cover.............

Changes in the Compensation Law

Civil Liability Bill is set to change the face of compensation cl..

link

Changes in the Compensation Law

Civil Liability Bill is set to change the face of compensation claims, a win for the Insurance companies not access to justice...

Appointing a Solicitor

Guide to some of the factors people use when appointing a Solicitor...

Social media in the work place

Social media in the work place - Staff using social media in the work place can become a problem, productivity and performance can be affected by the time spent..

Real Living Wage increase

Do you work for an employer that has signed up to the Real Living..

link

Discrimination

Discrimination.
All forms of discrimination are illegal, some are moral issues about how we conduct ourselves in everyday life, for example, are we discriminat..

Gig Economy - Rights for workers.

Hermes become the first major company to make concessions to 'Gig Workers'...

Employment Law Solicitors for Employers.

Employment Law Solicitors for Employers. If you're the employer of people, you want excellent solicitor's representation that giving expert advice...

Image Description
Is there anything wrong with this page? - any amendments will receive accreditation - email us

Solicitors.com are not a firm of solicitors, and any content on the site should not be used in substitute for obtaining Legal advice from a solicitor regulated in the UK, Solicitors.com recommends that you contact a firm of solicitors to discuss your individual legal requirement. Whilst we strive to bring you accurate up to date content, all content on this site is not legal advice and is not guaranteed to be correct. Use of this site does not create a client relationship.

Information by area of law
Back to top