UK government to roll out anti-trade union laws
The UK government is planning to introduce anti-trade union laws that will restrict strikes and hamper the basic human rights of workers, says the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), an EFJ affliate in the UK.
According to the NUJ, the proposed bill aimed at curtailing trade union activity would impose a minimum 50% turnout in strike ballots, with public sector unions requiring at least 40% of those eligible to vote.
Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general secretary said:
“Forget the language of fairness and rights being peddled by the Tories – this is the most cynical of attacks designed to finish what Margaret Thatcher started and enable a Conservative government to destroy the trade union movement. These are not reforms, they are draconian measures intended to strip workers of a voice at work.
“Preventing people from taking action by weighing them down in needless bureaucracy and giving employers ever greater powers will only mean that it will become inevitable that workers will have to set aside the law to properly defend their rights and working conditions. This is a foolish fight for the Tories to pick, but it’s one that the trade union movement won’t duck from.”
The NUJ, together with other trade unions has formed a Trade Union Co-ordinating Group, to address this issue.The UK parliament is debating the proposed bill today. For more information, please visit the NUJ website at https://www.nuj.org.uk/news/tory-anti-union-laws-are-an-attack-on-basic-human-rights/
Picture : NUJ
