Strikes and Ballots (15/07/15)

Image result for strikes and ballots

The Times reports that Unite is changing its rules so that members are not required to behave 'lawfully' during the course of a strike.

Now union rule books were all re-written during the 1980s after the Tory government of that era brought in legislation requiring unions to conduct pre-strike postal ballots and the Labour party under Neil Kinnock made it clear that there was no going back to the days of industrial disputes being conducted via flying pickets and mass meetings of union members.

The Labour government which was in power for 13 years between 1997 and 2010, with an overall majority of MPs at Westminster, saw no reason for turning the clock back either, but Len McCluskey and Unite it seems are now spoiling for a fight instead of boxing clever.

Yet boxing clever might would be a far better tactic if you ask me, because why should trade unions insist on having at least half their members taking part in strike ballots? 

German trade unions operate to higher 'member engagement' standards than their counterparts in the UK and maybe there are gains to be made on the union side by arguing for new and easier ways to vote, other than by just postal voting.       

Asking union members for explicit approval before they opt in to paying a political levy has been the norm in Northern Ireland for decades, so why not in the rest of the UK as well, and why should the system be restricted only to the Labour Party when the majority of union members in Scotland support the SNP?   

Popular posts from this blog

SNP - Conspiracy of Silence

LGB Rights - Hijacked By Intolerant Zealots!