In a tragic denouement to 13 years of failure by New Labour in government to reverse anti trade union laws, People Management magazine reports that ‘injunctions against strike ballots set to become routine’. In particular legal challenges on the grounds of inaccurate balloting and membership record discrepancies are becoming commonplace including in the public sector.
http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/pm/articles/2010/04/injunctions-against-strike-ballots-set-to-become-routine-say-lawyers.htm
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber is quoted as saying “it’s becoming increasingly easy for employers, unhappy at the prospect of a dispute, to rely on the courts to intervene and nullify a democratic ballot for industrial action on a mere technicality.”
This worsening situation poses a major challenge to UNISON at all levels to ensure RMS records are accurately and efficiently maintained. Branches and regions must ensure adequate resources are allocated to this task if we are to retain industrial action as a weapon of last resort when in dispute. Increased attention must be paid to membership turnover and reconciling union member records with subscription payments via DOCAS and direct debit. When in ballot situations the identification of recent and imminent future leavers will be critical in the wake of the BA decision.