Trade union representation of contingent workers in further education in the UK and Austria

2009 ◽  
Vol 15 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 461-480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Pernicka
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Further Education ◽  
Contingent Workers ◽  
Contingent Work ◽  
Strategic Responses ◽  
Institutional Contexts ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Cross Country ◽  
The Uk

The subject of this article is trade union strategies for contingent workers. On the assumption that trade unions’ strategic responses vary in accordance with their national institutional contexts, we compare Austria and the UK in the area of further education. In both countries, we found various trade union strategies for dealing with the growing heterogeneity of members and potential members of trade unions in further education. From a cross-country perspective, however, we found some evidence that the spread of contingent work might lead to a convergence of union strategies and a reduction of the influence on their behaviour of national institutions.

scholarly journals The Issue of Representativeness in the Lights of the Amended Trade Unions Act

2021 ◽  
Vol 95 ◽  
pp. 39-50
Author(s):  
Iwona Sierocka
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Specific Work ◽  
Collective Rights ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Given ◽  
National Trade ◽  
Work Contract ◽  
Joint Representation

The subject of the deliberations are issues regarding the representativeness and size of workplace trade union organisations after the changes introduced in the Trade Unions Act in 2018. According to the obligatory provisions, the “representativeness” of a trade union organisation is traditionally conditional on its size, but not only the employees, but also other categories of the employed are taken into account. It is, inter alia, about persons providing work under a contract of mandate or a specific work contract and sole proprietors. By expanding the full rights of coalition onto persons performing work on the basis other than employment relationship, the legislator increased the percentage limits decisive in the matter of representativeness. At present, the representative trade union organisation above the workplace level is also an organisation uniting at least 15% of all people performing gainful work under the articles of association, not fewer, however, than 10,000 persons performing gainful work. It works similarly at the workplace level. With reference to workplace trade union organisations which belong to organisations above the workplace level which meet the criteria for representativeness as specified in the Social Dialogue Council Act, at least 8% of the staff of the given employer is required. In the case of workplace trade union organisations which do not participate in such structures, the representativeness is conditional on uniting of at least 15% of persons performing gainful work for the given employer (7% and 10%, respectively, were required earlier). Determining the number of the staff, the employees and persons providing gainful work under other bases being employed for at least 6 months before the commencement of negotiations or arrangements must be included. A significant novelty is the necessity to select a joint representation of the representative organisations at the workplace level that belong to the same Trade Union Federation or National Trade Union Confederation in matters regarding collective rights and interests of the persons performing gainful work.

Re-framing the debate on breakaway trade unions in an era of neoliberalism

2018 ◽  
pp. 153-170
Author(s):  
David Evans
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
The Political ◽  
Trade Unionism ◽  
Political Narrative ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Contingent Approach ◽  
Union History ◽  
Labour Organisation

Breakaway unions have been a feature of labour organisation since the dawn of trade unionism. Despite this long history, the historiography of the subject remains undeveloped. The process of breaking away from an established union and setting up a rival organisation can be triggered by a range of impulses and inducements, fostered by both progressive and reactionary forces. On one level they can be considered a product of intra-union conflict, but a fuller understanding comes from viewing breakaways in the context of the broader economic and political circumstances in which they are embedded. The systematic remapping of the political and industrial relations landscape during the neoliberal epoch has brought into question the pluralist assumptions that have traditionally underpinned the notion of breakaway unions. Building from a historically-contingent approach, this chapter contends that the ideological onslaught unions have faced since the 1980s has encouraged division among union members and the breakaways that have emerged have generally given voice to a more moderate approach, sometimes couched in a ‘non-political’ narrative. In shining a light on the reasons behind these ideologically-motivated breakaways, this chapter contributes to the knowledge of this important but neglected area of trade union history.

Austerity and public sector trade union power: Before and after the crisis

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Werner Schmidt ◽  
Andrea Müller ◽  
Irene Ramos-Vielba ◽  
Annette Thörnquist ◽  
Christer Thörnqvist
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Union Power ◽  
Institutional Power ◽  
Power Resources ◽  
Political Resources ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Uk

We use a power resources approach to examine the effects of the 2008–2009 financial and economic crisis on public sector trade union power in Germany, Spain, Sweden and the UK, comparing structural, organizational, institutional, societal and political power resources before and after the crisis. Unions’ power resources have (at least temporarily) weakened in Spain, with a similar but less pronounced trend in the UK; whereas in Sweden and Germany, one can detect ambiguous but slightly positive signals, which reflect neither the crisis nor opposition to austerity. As well as structural, organizational and institutional power resources, societal and political resources are decisive for public sector trade unions.

PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS AND INTERESTS OF THOSE WHO PERFORM PAID WORK IN THE LIGHT OF THE ACT ON TRADE UNIONS. THE AXIOLOGICAL-PHYLOSOPHICAL-PRAXEOLOGICAL ASPECT

2021 ◽  
Vol specjalny II (XXI) ◽  
pp. 471-492
Author(s):  
Janusz Żołyński
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Vertical Dimension ◽  
The Other ◽  
Paid Work ◽  
Legal Norms ◽  
Collective Agreements ◽  
Binding Force ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Normative Content

The feature of the Polish protection of employees is both the vertical and horizontal binding force. The vertical dimension stems from the rights and duties constituted in domestic legal norms being addressed to all of its addressees. These norms, on the other hand, may take on a horizontal dimension since their specification may be the subject of detailed regulations such as normative collective agreements being a basis for seeking redress, concluded by a trade union and an employer. They may thus be the subject of normative content of collective labour agreements, work regulations and separate collective agreements.

Employees and Trade Unions

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Mallon ◽  
Shai Y. Waisman ◽  
Ray C. Schrock
Keyword(s):  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
Information Sharing ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Case Law ◽  
Good Faith ◽  
The Other ◽  
Playing Field ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Require Information

At first blush, the UK and US case law and statutory regimes that are applicable in insolvency to employees and the unions that represent them appear to be quite different. However, a more thorough review reveals that the goal in both jurisdictions is the same: to reduce the harsh impact of insolvency on those who are usually the least at fault for the subject company’s predicament’its employees. Indeed, among other similarities, both systems provide for priority in right of payment for a portion of the compensation due employees, have stringent notice requirements in the event of termination or rejection of collective bargaining agreements, and require information sharing and good faith negotiations. The underlying objective of each system is to level the playing field and to incentivize the employer and the employees to reach a consensual solution to avoid the risks and burdens mandated by each regime. Whether the legislators, administrators, and jurists in either jurisdiction have gone too far or not far enough in developing tools for one side or the other will depend on the reader’s perspective.

Trade unions and non-striking members

Legal Studies ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ewan McKendrick
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Legal Action ◽  
National Union ◽  
Industrial Action ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
The Subject

The ‘rights’, if any, which belong to trade union members who refuse to participate in industrial action have been the subject of debate and controversy recently. A number of factors account for this. The first is the legal action maintained by members of the National Union of Mineworkers who refused to participate in the recent industrial action in the coalfields. Secondly, recent debates over the wisdom of introducing a ‘positive’ right to strike in place of the existing system of ‘immunities’ have, as Lord Wedderburn has remarked, ‘opened up… the prospect of a prohibition on unions disciplining members who refuse to strike, on the basis of the fallacy that a positive ‘‘right to strike’’ implies the negative ‘‘right not to strike’’’.

scholarly journals Digital unionism as a renewal strategy? Social media use by trade union confederations

2020 ◽  
pp. 002218562097933
Author(s):  
Bia Carneiro ◽  
Hermes Augusto Costa
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Information Technologies ◽  
Non Union ◽  
Trade Unionism ◽  
Union Renewal ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Labor Institutions ◽  
The Uk

Traditional actors such as trade unions are inevitably challenged by digital technologies, not only from the perspective of labor relations, but also in relation to outreach and communications strategies. In fact, as online and offline realities become increasingly intertwined, the presence of organized labor institutions within the Internet’s current networked environment is unavoidable. This article debates digital trade unionism as a strategy for trade union renewal, particularly the implications of using social media platforms to connect and interact with a broader audience beyond the labor movement. Through a comprehensive comparative analysis of the Facebook pages of six trade union confederations from Brazil, Canada, Portugal, and the UK, we find that despite the possibilities for horizontal dialogue enabled by the new digital communication and information technologies, trade union confederations maintain an outdated ‘one-way’ model of communication, hindering opportunities to reach and engage with both union and non-union actors.

Confronting racism in the health services

2007 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 413-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adriana Bernardotti ◽  
Sukhwant Dhaliwal ◽  
Fabio Perocco
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
National Public Health ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Very High

There are very high levels of staff of non-EU origin working in Europe's health services and these staff are often faced with racism. In many cases health sector trade unions have attempted to confront and challenge this racism. This article reports on research that shows that racism (both direct and indirect) is a continuing problem and that some trade unionists deny this and may even reinforce racism. The research consisted of studies in the national public health sectors of Belgium, France, Italy and the UK. The article concludes by examining the possibilities and limitations of trade union-led responses as collective means for confronting the many different forms of racism within the sector.

British Trade Union Law Since the Trade Disputes and Trade Union Act of 1927

1932 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-351
Author(s):  
Edwin E. Witte
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Legal Status ◽  
Trade Disputes ◽  
British Trade ◽  
American Interest ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
History Of ◽  
Entire History ◽  
The Subject

Judging from articles on the subject, American interest in British trade union law has been considerable, but spasmodic. Every important decision or statute affecting the legal status of the British trade unions has been followed by articles on this side of the Atlantic outlining the entire history of the British law of labor combinations and attempting to forecast the outcome of the most recent developments. Between times, the subject has not been discussed and no one has presented the actual results of the heralded developments. The Trade Disputes and Trade Union Act of 1927 is the most recent of these developments noted in this country.

scholarly journals Collective wage bargaining under strain in northern European construction: Resisting institutional drift?

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 341-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Arnholtz ◽  
Guglielmo Meardi ◽  
Johannes Oldervoll
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Wage Bargaining ◽  
Institutional Innovation ◽  
Self Employment ◽  
Northern European ◽  
Wage Regulation ◽  
Collective Wage Bargaining ◽  
The Uk

Internationalization, trade union decline, enforcement problems and rising self-employment all strain the effectiveness of collective wage bargaining arrangements in northern European construction. We examine Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK, and show that these strains have pushed trade unions to seek assistance from the state to stabilize wage regulation, but with results that vary according to employer strategies and the power balances between the actors. While Denmark and the UK have barely introduced any state support, Norway has followed the Netherlands and Germany in introducing legal mechanisms for extension of collectively agreed minimum wage terms. The country studies suggest that state assistance alleviates some of the strain, but does not reverse the trends, and the comparison indicates that both institutional innovation and reorganization may be required if wage bargaining is not to drift into different functions.

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