Strikes bill must conform with international rules, says ILO

The International Labour Organisation has suggested that the UK government should make changes to its proposed strikes bill, seeking assistance from the workers’ rights watchdog.

The TUC had complained to the United Nations body about the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill in September, alleging that the government was attacking the right to strike, which has been protected by the ILO’s Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention since 1948.

The bill is now in its final stages. Last month MPs voted down amendments that the House of Lords had put forward.

At a meeting last week, the ILO said the UK government needs to “ensure that existing and prospective legislation is in conformity with the Convention”.

It also invited the government to seek technical assistance from the ILO and report back on progress in September.

The UN body said the UK should allow trade unions to facilitate electronic balloting of their members. Currently, unions must use postal votes for the election of officials and to gauge support for industrial action.

It also said the UK must limit and define the investigatory powers of the Certification Officer – the body responsible for regulating unions – to “ensure that these powers do not interfere with the autonomy and functioning of workers’ and employer’s organisations”, and the government should also consult more with unions on legislative matters.

Earlier this year the director-general for the ILO said it had not backed the strikes bill, despite government ministers suggesting otherwise.

The Joint Committee on Human Rights has suggested the bill has deep flaws and is incompatible with workers’ rights.

The TUC welcomed the ILO’s intervention, which it described as “hugely embarrassing” for the UK government.

TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: “The right to strike is a fundamental freedom. But the Conservatives are attacking it in broad daylight with the draconian Strikes Bill.

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“Ministers have been falsely claiming the ILO’s support for a spiteful piece of legislation which only serves to drag us further away from democratic norms. The truth is that the UK already has some of the most restrictive trade union laws in Europe.”

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