Times are hard for quangos and ACAS, the Government appointed conciliation service, is urging trade union officials to ‘use collective conciliation earlier’.
ACAS has conducted research into trade union experience of using its services and 1,024 officials from 63 trade unions were surveyed in what ACAS claims is ‘one of the most comprehensive surveys of paid union negotiating officials in recent times’: http://tinyurl.com/36sp2fu
It can only be hoped that ACAS will make similar exhortations to employers about the benefits of using its services in order to resolve disputes. Starting with the Local Government Employers (LGE) whose refusal to over the 2010/11 NJC pay negotiations is an absolute disgrace. (so far the LGE have refused to engage in arbitration or conciliation and ACAS will not pursue the dispute under those circumstances).
http://www.unison.org.uk/localgov/pages_view.asp?did=11778
