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Trades Unions and Labour Laws

Chapters

  1. Salaries and Taxation
  2. Pensions
  3. Benefits
  4. Health and Care
  5. Education
  6. Housing
  7. Employment
  8. Trades Unions and Labour Laws
  9. Trade and Industry
  10. Transport
  11. Energy
  12. Environment
  13. Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and Rural Life
  14. Crime
  15. Legal System
  16. Immigration and Asylum
  17. Local Government
  18. Devolution and Regional Government
  19. Parliament and Democracy
  20. Media
  21. Freedom of Information and Privacy
  22. Northern Ireland
  23. European Union
  24. Foreign Policy
  25. Defence and Disarmament
  26. Conclusions
 Preamble

Chapters

  1. Salaries and Taxation
  2. Pensions
  3. Benefits
  4. Health and Care
  5. Education
  6. Housing
  7. Employment
  8. Trades Unions and Labour Laws
  9. Trade and Industry
  10. Transport
  11. Energy
  12. Environment
  13. Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and Rural Life
  14. Crime
  15. Legal System
  16. Immigration and Asylum
  17. Local Government
  18. Devolution and Regional Government
  19. Parliament and Democracy
  20. Media
  21. Freedom of Information and Privacy
  22. Northern Ireland
  23. European Union
  24. Foreign Policy
  25. Defence and Disarmament
  26. Conclusions
As a key part of their legislation, the Tories passed several laws restricting the rights of trades unions and their members, sometimes in breach of our commitments to the ILO and the Council of Europe's Social Charter. Even the right to belong to a union was taken away at GCHQ (a government electronic listening station) and in Royal Ordnance factories. They resisted improvements to workers' conditions in the EU (taking court action against consultation rights for workers, a maximum working week and protection of conditions after transfer to a new employer).
Labour policy was:
1To reach ILO standards in labour laws 
2To accept EU rulings in the 3 matters above 
3To give full employment rights from day one of a job 
4To give protection to whistle-blowers 
5To end zero-hours contracts (obliging someone to be ready to work if needed) 
6To improve rights for those with family responsibilities 
7To restore the right to belong to a trade union at GCHQ 
8To restore the right to belong to a trade union without being discriminated against by an employer 
9To give unions the right to be recognised for negotiations with employers 
10To outlaw the sacking of workers taking legal strike action 
11To protect all the conditions of workers transferring to a new employer 
In fact under New Labour:
1Employment laws still breach ILO standardsLeft as under the Conservatives
2All court cases were continued, and the rulings have been grudgingly accepted with exclusions and delaysLeft as under the Conservatives
3Protection against unfair dismissal is now given after one year rather than twoPledge partially carried out
4A Tory private member's bill gives whistle-blowers much more compensation but they can still be dismissedPledge partially carried out
5?We need more information on the outcome of this pledge. Can you help?
6Maternal and parental leave entitlements have been greatly improvedPledge carried out
7Trade union rights were restored at GCHQPledge carried out
8The right to belong to a union was restored but employers can still discriminate against members (?) and pressurise staff not to joinPledge partially carried out
9This right was restored in companies with more than 20 employees and where at least 40% of a bargaining unit (agreed with the employer) vote in favourPledge partially carried out
10Workers can now be sacked after 12 weeks on strikePledge partially carried out
11This has been promised but not yet delivered(?) for all public sector workersPledge partially carried out
In addition:
Bullet pointNew legislation obliges unions to help employers make plans before a strike 
Bullet pointPublic sector employers have threatened strikers and offered inducements to break strikes 
Bullet pointChanges to employment tribunals? 
Bullet pointIn Tony Blairs words British labour laws are "the most restrictive on trades unions in the Western world" 
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