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Trade unions

A trade union is an association of workers in a particular industry or sector, designed to protect the rights, interests and working conditions of employees. Large trade unions in the UK include the TUC, Unite, Unison, the GMB and Usdaw.

Trade unions can receive recognition, or employers can derecognise trade unions. Employment laws protecting employees taking industrial action, such as taking part in strikes or picketing, are contained in the Employment Rights Act 1996 and Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.


    • Employee relations
    • Latest News
    • Industrial action / strikes

    Amazon sets out objections to union drive

    by Jo Faragher 11 Apr 2022
    by Jo Faragher 11 Apr 2022

    Amazon is trying to overturn an historic vote by its US workers to form a union for its workers.
    Workers...

    • Employment law
    • Discipline
    • Latest News

    Unison to appeal against trade union detriment ruling

    by Ashleigh Webber 4 Apr 2022
    by Ashleigh Webber 4 Apr 2022

    A recent Court of Appeal ruling that confirmed UK legislation does not protect striking employees from action short of dismissal has effectively 'given bosses the green light to discipline staff who strike', a union has claimed.

    • Fire and rehire
    • Written statement of employment particulars
    • Zero hours

    Employment Bill could face further delay

    by Jo Faragher 4 Apr 2022
    by Jo Faragher 4 Apr 2022

    Unions have reacted with fury at reports the long-awaited Employment Bill will not be announced during the Queen’s Speech in...

    • Collective redundancy
    • Employment law
    • Latest News

    Ministers withdraw legal threat over P&O Ferries redundancies

    by Adam McCulloch 1 Apr 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 1 Apr 2022

    The Nautilus Union: ‘P&O has gotten away with it. There’s no fine, there’s no legal action, there’s only words and hot air.’

    • Collective redundancy
    • Latest News
    • Information & consultation

    P&O Ferries: Grant Shapps’ minimum wage plan dismissed

    by Adam McCulloch 31 Mar 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 31 Mar 2022

    The government's plan to ask UK ports to block ferries from docking if they do no pay crews the UK minimum wage would not succeed, the docks industry has stated.

    • Collective redundancy
    • Fire and rehire
    • Department for Business and Trade (DBT)

    Fire and rehire: Royal Mail faces threat of industrial action

    by Adam McCulloch 31 Mar 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 31 Mar 2022

    Unite threatens Royal Mail with industrial action over what it claims is a ‘fire and rehire’ scheme to replace managers.

    • Collective redundancy
    • Latest News
    • Dismissal

    P&O Ferries’ redundancy obligations: Legal Q&A

    by Adam McCulloch 28 Mar 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 28 Mar 2022

    Some facets of the government's response to the 800 job losses were ill-informed, a legal expert tells Personnel Today

    • Case law
    • Latest News
    • Industrial action / strikes

    Trade union detriment: action short of dismissal is legal, finds Court of Appeal

    by Ashleigh Webber 25 Mar 2022
    by Ashleigh Webber 25 Mar 2022

    Employers are able to sanction employees that take part in industrial action without breaching their human rights, the Court of Appeal has ruled.

    • Fire and rehire
    • Collective redundancy
    • Employment law

    ‘Government must take over P&O Ferries services’ says TUC

    by Adam McCulloch 24 Mar 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 24 Mar 2022

    The TUC has said ministers must step in to run services if a ‘fit and proper’ operator could not be found quickly to replace P&O Ferries.

    • Collective redundancy
    • Fire and rehire
    • Latest News

    P&O Ferries: Pressure on MPs to back ‘fire and rehire’ ban

    by Jo Faragher 21 Mar 2022
    by Jo Faragher 21 Mar 2022

    A group of Labour MPs has written to business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng urging him to launch legal action against P&O...

    • Collective redundancy
    • Fire and rehire
    • Constructive dismissal

    TUC: redundancies by P&O Ferries ‘must be a turning point for UK workers’ rights’

    by Adam McCulloch 18 Mar 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 18 Mar 2022

    In the wake of the P&O Ferry sackings the TUC has demanded that ministers prevent workers from ‘being treated like disposable labour’.

    • Fire and rehire
    • Latest News
    • Employee communications

    Unions call P&O Ferries mass sackings a ‘scandalous betrayal’

    by Personnel Today 17 Mar 2022
    by Personnel Today 17 Mar 2022

    UK ferry operator P&O Ferries has sacked about 800 crew across its fleet with no notice after stopping all its sailings on Thursday 17 March.

    • Zero hours
    • Gender
    • Latest News

    Zero-hours work ‘tightens grip of structural racism’ on the labour market

    by Adam McCulloch 9 Mar 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 9 Mar 2022

    Insecure work has tightened the grip of structural racism on the labour market and deepened gender inequalities, the TUC has warned.

    • Latest News
    • Inflation
    • Pay & benefits

    Third of workers back Bank of England chief over pay restraint

    by Adam McCulloch 4 Mar 2022
    by Adam McCulloch 4 Mar 2022

    A poll by recruiter Randstad UK suggested that more people than expected would accept exercising more restraint when it came to wages.

    • Bonuses
    • Employee communications
    • Latest News

    FCA’s new pay offer a ‘grave error’, claims Unite

    by Ashleigh Webber 2 Mar 2022
    by Ashleigh Webber 2 Mar 2022

    Staff at the Financial Conduct Authority are set to see their base pay increase by an average of more than 12% over the next two years.

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