Trade unions have pledged to do “whatever we need to do” to ensure employment law in Jersey, Channel Isles, is rewritten in the wake of a legal statement.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) last month wrote to the Jersey government expressing concerns over its forthcoming employment legislation.
The Employment Relations Law, passed by the States of Jersey in 2005, is due to come into force later this year. It was designed to increase the rights of workers but unions claim that it will make it harder for workers to take collective action.
Andy Frampton, regional secretary at the Transport and General Workers section of Unite, said: “What the [Jersey] government has come up with is anti-union rights, which generally restrict the rights of workers to organise in a union and make industrial action impossible.
“Jersey is a tax haven and the government is appeasing the finance industry at the expense of workers.”
The union has written to the Jersey government demanding that they renegotiate the legislation in light of the ILO recommendations.
“We are planning our next course of action if the government won’t sit down with us,” said Frampton. “There may be another public demonstration. We will petition politicians. We will do whatever we need to do.”
The Jersey government said it had received the ILO’s comments, was reviewing them and could not comment further at this time.
According to the Jersey Advisory and Conciliation Service, the Employment Relations Law will:
Provide a system of legal identification and registration of trade unions and employer associations and give such bodies legal status
Create a legal dispute resolution process which supports and develops good industrial relations
Support codes of practice to describe good and reasonable employment relations practice.
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