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The Trade Union Act was passed in May 2016. It was partly designed to address the perception that disruptive strikes were being called by unions despite low levels of support from members - especially in transport and other public services.
Regulations implementing central parts of the Act came into force on 1 March this year, and accompanying updated codes of practice and guidance are also being rolled out. This area does not stand still. There are already calls in Parliament and the Greater London Authority to make a union's right to strike in transport and public services subject to a judge giving permission for it to proceed. This article looks at the key changes to be aware of now the Act is in force.
Information, notifications and expiry of the ballot mandate
Content of the ballot paper. The new rules require unions to include more detailed information on the ballot paper sent to members. This must now summarise the dispute in enough detail that members can understand what issues are unresolved, the action planned, and the period during which it is expected to take place. Any ballot sent to union members from 1 March 2017 must meet the requirements.
As unions are required to supply any affected employer with a copy of the ballot paper in advance, employers will be able to check the appropriate information is now included.
There are some interesting practical questions arising from these changes. For example, the duty to provide information about the nature of action short of a strike only relates to the voting paper. There is no similar change to the duty to give notice of the industrial action to the employer.
This means that if a union were to change its mind about the action, short of a strike, or indeed wanted to escalate the action short of a strike (for example from a "withdrawal of cooperation" to an overtime ban), it apparently has no duty to inform the employer of this....