[IER] IER welcomes independent review of electronic balloting for unions

Fri Nov 4 13:56:11 GMT 2016

IER News Brief 04/11/16

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news brief

Friday 04th November 2016

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The Institute of Employment Rights welcomes the announcement <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=e32370f7de&e=71131c031b>  by Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Corporate Responsibility, Margot James this week that Sir Ken Knight has been appointed to Chair an independent review into electronic balloting for unions.

The government was forced into conducting the review after trade unions and Labour MPs fought for the right for trade unions to use electronic balloting systems during the passing of the Trade Union Act (TUA) through parliament earlier this year.

Initially, the Tories argued that electronic systems could be open to fraudulent activity, but as it was pointed out during the debate, these are the very same systems used by the Conservative Party for their own internal elections such as that of their nominee for London mayor.

The review, and the government's response to it, will be presented to parliament by December 2017 at the latest and will investigate any security issues with electronic balloting.

Currently, trade unions are limited to using postal ballots, which are expensive to run and less effective in gaining a significant turnout to votes. This impedes trade union democracy and could now significantly weaken the ability of trade unions to fight back against unfair treatment by employers after the TUA introduced new support thresholds of a 50% turnout for industrial action ballots, and an additional 40% of support for strikes from the whole workforce (with abstentions effectively counted as 'no' votes) in many public services

Our stories this week - in the news and comments section below - detail further evidence of low pay and exploitation of workers, underlining the need for trade unions to be empowered in their fight against unfair wages and conditions. 

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 News and comment

 Workers' rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	IER Chair John Hendy QC joins 101 law professors in TTIP/CETA fight
John Hendy QC, Chair of the Institute of Employment Rights and a leading barrister, has become the latest signatory to a legal statement made by 101 law professors warning against investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanisms in international trade deals.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=6e02d937c1&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Mick Whelan <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/03f1c04b-d689-40ac-b92d-7a2af84c1520.jpg> 

	ASLEF Chief: IER proposals would strengthen workers' voices
Mick Whelan, General Secretary of ASLEF, has welcomed the Institute of Employment Rights’ Manifesto for Labour, pledging the support of his union.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=4b73fe5d9b&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Workers' rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	Leigh Day vows to help more workers fight against Uber
Leigh Day, the legal firm that assisted GMB in two recent test cases against Uber, has vowed to take further cases before the courts.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=e73a631022&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Low Pay <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/c9de063b-cd73-4fc5-8d13-fb67b7e3e040.png> 

	Low pay in London doubled over last decade, study shows
The number of jobs classed as 'low paid' in London has doubled over the last ten years, analysis from the New Policy Institute has shown.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=1b9ccb490e&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Union Rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/8a74e5d2-ba66-4faf-a08d-e7b95ed9b73b.png> 

	Govt launches independent review into electronic balloting for unions
The government has launched an independent review into permitting trade unions to use electronic balloting services for industrial action as part of the Trade Union Act 2016 (TUA).
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=03e85cf7b8&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Workers' rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	IER welcomes inquiry into workers' rights: law needs to change to reflect changes in the world of work
The Institute of Employment Rights (IER) notes the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee's launch of an inquiry into workers' rights in the burgeoning "gig" economy but warns against the further fragmentation of labour law.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=c83f666bd7&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 Workers' rights <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/b1c726de-bf3c-454c-9dd0-50d42672c9ff.png> 

	Uber is 'misleading workers' after losing court case
After a tribunal decision last week found Uber to be misclassifying its workers as 'self-employed', the company has been accused of misleading drivers working for the firm as to the meaning of the outcome.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=105361cc7e&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

 NEW RESOURCES: Health and Safety Update report and free downloads 

 Andrew Moretta <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/9a4d1116-0823-462c-83db-997c4c680fff.jpg> 

	Health and Safety Update 2016
Andrew Moretta, a delegate at the Institute of Employment Rights' Health and Safety Update 2016 conference in London on October 18 2016, provides a detailed report of the day's debate including free downloads of all papers and presentations used on the day.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=073a38ccc7&e=71131c031b> > click here to read full story

  Publications

 EU Developments <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/fb25d1db-2c1e-4d50-8d47-17dc166f146f.jpeg> 

	Access to Justice: Exposing the myths: £6
By Andrew Moretta
In the second of IER’s series of Mythbusters, Andrew Moretta considers the many myths surrounding access to justice, including the narrative surrounding the “red tape” and “burdens on business” ideology, which he believes paved the way for systematic attacks on the tribunal system.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=ef758fffd2&e=71131c031b> > click here to read more and purchase

 Kill the Bill <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/3a996d1c-1459-4dfb-81b8-8901488dad8a.jpg> 

	Protect the right to strike: kill the bill: £5
By John Hendy QC & Professor Keith Ewing
Two leading experts on trade union rights – Professor Keith Ewing and John Hendy QC – publish a short but comprehensive overview of the Trade Union Bill and its implications.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=9ccc759901&e=71131c031b> > click here to read more and purchase 

 Ballot Thresholds <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/cee8b19e-c2dc-452d-a284-b14209fbf568.jpg> 

	The Conservative Government’s proposed strike ballot thresholds: The challenge to trade unions: from £6
By Professor Ralph Darlington and Dr John Dobson
According to the authors of this timely report, the government is attempting to rush into law ‘the most sweeping and radical tightening of rules on industrial action since the Thatcher era of the 1980’s’. They warn that such proposals could result in ‘the biggest showdown over industrial relations for a generation’ and go on to drill down into one aspect of the government’s proposals – strike ballots.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=49d99e6813&e=71131c031b> > click here to read more and purchase 

 Keithe Ewing <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/6ac2ddd4-6bd6-4c3f-81ad-06fdb882171c.jpg> 

	The mythology of business: from £6
By David Whyte
The ‘myths’ that this publication takes into consideration are the kind of things that politicians now routinely say without thinking. Yet these 10 myths have very little foundation in reality and are rarely, if ever, accompanied with any concrete evidence to support them.
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=082b3ee30c&e=71131c031b> > click here to read more and purchase 

  Events

 ELU London <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/8ef4ad46-3f93-4621-8f5e-8601d94a97cc.jpg> 

	LONDON: Employment Law Update 2016
09 November 2016 - 09:30 - 15:15
Unite the Union, London
Our annual Employment Law Update brings together legal and academic experts with a representative from the TUC. This year we are very pleased that our event will be opened with a keynote address from the President of the Tribunals, Judge Brian Doyle, updating us with an inside account of the current ET practices and procedures. . 
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=6410029f5b&e=71131c031b> > click here to read more and book your place

 ELU Liverpool <https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3/images/6bbca495-8ed6-4747-883d-63b5dc93bcc5.jpg> 

	LIVERPOOL: Employment Law Update 2016
29 November 2016 - 09:30 - 15:15
Unite the Union, Liverpool
Our annual Employment Law Update brings together legal and academic experts with a representative from the TUC. This year we are very pleased that our event will be opened with a keynote address from the President of the Tribunals, Judge Brian Doyle, updating us with an inside account of the current ET practices and procedures. . 
 <http://ier.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f121e48a8bb6d3101590c12d3&id=27a0471831&e=71131c031b> > click here to read more and book your place

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