As part of its support for the US trade union movement's campaign todefend collective bargaining rights for public sector workers - the TUC has published an article by a US academic Prof William B Gould IV- which argues that 'collective bargaining is the essence ofdemocracy'. http://www.tuc.org.uk/international/tuc-19357-f0.cfm
The Professor has a sound argument, but if we accept his premise, democracy is in a fragile condition in the UK with collective bargaining in the private sector now down to a post war low of 20% and falling fast. Here UNISON International Officer Nick Crook surveys the extent of collective bargaining across the UK workforce: http://www.social-europe.eu/2010/07/collective-bargaining-in-the-uk-and-eu/
