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Dissertation for Masters in Laws
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CHAPTER 1INTRODUCTION
The relation between the employer and employee in the employment started from that of
a master and servant. With the passage of time and development in employment law the
relation are termed as that of employee and employer. The past terminology of master
and servant itself shows the dominance of one party over the other and the servant had no
power to bargain in regard to their employment statuses. During the industrialization the
workers started uniting aggrieved by the unpleasant working conditions, these groups
latter developed in the form of trade unions.
One of the major focuses of the unions is the process of collective bargaining, which give
the union’s strength and membership. According to the latest data and studies the
unionism is declining as compared to past, which effects the collective bargaining at the
workplaces1. So taking into consideration the issue, the focus of my dissertation would be
analysis of how the collective bargaining has been affected with the weakening of trade
union rights in the recent decades through the legislative controls by various governments
and what would be the future of collective bargaining at the workplaces, if there is not a
substantial membership with the unions.
In promoting industrial harmony collective bargaining is the most efficient tool but
remain under scanner of the governments, by various legislative enactments, policies
from time to time. Criticism of collective bargaining as an instrument for promoting
industrial peace has become common. It has been matter of political contention regarding
the polices of state on collective labour law. The concept of collective laissez –faire by
1
Unions ,Collective Bargaining and Employment Relation Project, TUC Research Bulletin Number 1 ,March 2011 ,
Page 1
1
,renounced authority on collective labour law has always been challenge to those who
want to reduce the significance of collective law in employment relations, which to some
extent has given significance to the individual employment rights 2. The absence of any
statutory procedure for the development of collective labour law in the employment
relations is a protection to the employer’s rights to refusal of acceptance of the trade
unions for the protection of collective employment rights of the workers3.
The dissertation aims to analyse the role of collective bargaining in employment relations
in Britain, through development of law and its impact on the working relationships of the
employers and employee. The issue of the collective labour rights cannot be achieved
without the trade unions or the collective representations. The period of strikes is no
more seen in the employment relations, this means that more emphasis on the mutual
negotiations on the work related issues in the last decade, except the present resentments
of the unions and employees in the 2011 on the issues of pensions and government cuts in
the employment sector. The dissertation focus the issue of recognition of the trade unions
for the enforcement of the collective rights and for the same evaluates the various
legislations. The most significant among them is the recognition procedures under
Scheduled A1 of TULRCA 1992, with latest amendments vide Employment Relation Act
2004.
It is essential to know the background of the trade unions and collective bargaining, so
Chapter 2 describes about the evolution of the trade unions and collective bargaining in
Britain, it is an analysis of the origin of the collective rights in employment relations in
Britain.
2
Bob Simpson, ‘Judicial Control of CAC’, 2007 Industrial Law Journal 287
3
Ruth Dukes, ‘The Statutory Recognition Procedure 1999: No Bias in Favor of Recognition?, 2008 Industrial Law
Journal 236
2
,Chapter 3 explains development of the concept of Collective bargaining in Britain
thorough various Legislative enactments. This chapter discusses about how the law has
been framed by various governments and what is its present status of law in relation to
collective bargaining and discuss about the intentions of the various governments from
time to time.
Chapter 4 is analysis of the recognition procedure as farmed under Schedule A1 of
TULRCA 1992, European Directive 2002/14/EC regarding information and consultation
and enactment of the Information and Consultation of Employees Regulation 2004.
Chapter further focuses on the impact of the recognition procedure on the employment
relations, the role of ACAS in collective barraging and recognition procedure and the
CAC powers and procedures for the recognition and derecognition of the unions for the
purpose of collective bargaining.
Chapter 5 speaks about the prospectus of collective barraging in the employment relation
in view of the development of the law and social partnership concept.
Chapter 6 is the proposed recommendations on the issue of status collective bargaining
and law. And chapter 7 concludes the issue on the basis of the research.
METHODOLOGY
The source of data for the dissertation is derived from numerous sources. The material
and information is gathered from TUC and other unions like UNISON, UNITE etc. and
its surveys in relation to the trends in the collective labour law in Britain. The basic
thought is derived form the TUC research papers ‘Unions ,Collective Bargaining and
Employment Relation Project, TUC Research Bulletin Number 1 ,March 2011 and
Bulletin No.2 , July 2011. The surveys conducted by TUC on the issue of recognition of
3
, trade unions for the purpose of collective bargaining. The data is derived from the
National Statistic Department, UK Department of Bushiness, Innovation and Skills (BIS)
and Employment Relation Survey Reports by Chartered Institute of Personal and
Development (CIPD). The information is gathered from the websites of the various trade
unions and other related web links, of trade unions, government departments, West Law,
Lexis Nexis, and Workplace Employment Relation Surveys (WERS) etc.
The source of information is gathered from various text books, journals and case law
which are referred in the dissertation. The analysis of the surveys, reports, journal
articles, case laws and the legislative enactments formed the base of the present
dissertation. The various research papers, case studies and working papers are analyzed
on the decline of collective barraging and its role in the employment relation. The
development of law through the intervention of the governments and the trade unions had
been an interpreted for the protection and development of collective rights in Britain.
LITERATURE REVIEW
There has been research and published papers in regarding to the issue of collective
bargaining and employment relations in Britain; on the basis of the available data my
dissertation focuses on the decline trends of collective bargaining and the role of law.
Department of Business Innovation and Skills has been conducting the surveys in relation
to workplace employment relations since 1980. Since then such surveys are conducted in
the years 1980,1984,1990,1998 and 2004 and next is going to take place in early 2012.
The last survey of 2004 showed continued decline of collective labour organizations and
the more number of employees favor not to be union members then the results of 1998
survey. The workplaces disinclined to recognize unions for bargaining on the issues like
4
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