Union power has evolved since the 80s

by Rudy Scheinost

The recent British Airways/Unite strike battle is the latest in a long line of recent disputes which have highlighted the changing role of unions and the trend for companies to challenge their decisions and ballots.

Bin strikes in Leeds last summer preceded the BA strikes which were ruled out once because of an illegal ballot before more strikes were confirmed recently.

There is no doubt that the power of the unions has been reduced in the past couple of decades, but is this a good thing? They can no longer bring the country to its knees. This is important for UK business and UK jobseekers.

A spokesperson for the Trades Union Congress said that after the 1980s the power of the unions has been undermined by anti-union laws.

"Our view is that the anti-union laws introduced from the 1980s onwards have undermined people's right to strike. As recent judgments have shown, complicated laws do not benefit employers nor employees and we want the laws reviewed so that the law on strikes is made much clearer," he said.