Industrial action: Summer strike disruption – understand what’s lawful

Tim Tyndall looks at the rights of workers taking part in industrial action, protections for employers from unofficial action and proposed government reforms of strike laws The main legal remedy available to employers who believe a trade union has made mistakes in the way it has organised industrial action is to apply for an injunction …
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Trade unions: Courts come full circle on detrimental treatment against strikers

The Court of Appeal has overturned the EAT and decided that workers are not protected against detriment for participating in industrial action. Philip Cameron and Chris Coombes report Employers have considered it lawful to subject employees who go on strike to detrimental treatment. For many years, legal practitioners have been aligned in their interpretation of …
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Unlawful inducements: When can unionised employers make direct offers to workers?

Matt Robinson and Adam Turner review the Supreme Court’s recent decision on whether an employer unlawfully attempted to bypass its workers’ recognised trade union during pay negotiations The requirement that employers must first exhaust their collective bargaining processes before making a direct offer throws the spotlight on when exactly the process has been exhausted. In …
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Legal news: Employment update

Susan Mackay rounds up the latest developments affecting employers and their advisers Although the responses to BEIS’ consultation were generally in favour of a new workers’ watchdog, a number of concerns were raised. Workers’ Watchdog: New single enforcement body to be created On 8 June, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) published …
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Industrial action: EAT muddies the waters on protections for employees who go on strike

A recent ruling has highlighted the need to reform the UK’s patchwork of trade union legislation, writes Fraser Younson The EAT’s decision seems to proceed on the basis that the right to take industrial action is absolute and does not need to be balanced against the ‘rights and freedoms of others’. The recent decision by …
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