Employment And Trade Union Law example essay topic

Industrial relations are transactions, and activities affecting the determination and enforcement of the terms and conditions of employment. The main parties involved are the trade unions and their employers. Industrial Revolution referrers to the developments that changed Great Britain, in the 18th century, from a largely rural population making a living almost completely from agriculture to a town-centred society engaged increasingly in factory manufacture. Other European nations followed the same process after Great Britain, during the 19th century, and in the first half of the 20th century. In some countries this change is only now taking place or still lies in the future. The Industrial Revolution started in England, because that nation had the technical means, like government encouragement, and a large and varied trade network.

The first factories appeared in 1740, concentrating on textile production. In 1740 the majority of English people wore woollen garments, but within the next 100 years the scratchy, often soggy and fungus-filled woollens were replaced by cotton especially after the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney, an American, in 1793. In the early 19th century, before the wages and hours of labour were usually agreed with the employers and individual employees. The existing legal, social, and economic climate did not like the development of workers' organizations.

Because the difference in settlement power between the employers and the employees caused many problems, however, the workers in various industries began to organize trade unions, which demanded better terms of employment. The importance of their power was authority and combined forces that they could threat mass action such as strikes, or other forms of industrial action, to push for their demands. The laws that governed employment conditions, workplace conditions, and industrial relations helped the trade unions. Under the Trade Union Act or 1871 unions became full legal organisation and the union funds were protected.

Some of the acts of parliament enabled the trade union to broaden the field of action like the Trade Dispute Act of 1906, which protected the union against any claims for damages by their employer. The Trade Union Congress represented mainly the unions of skilled workers, but in the 1890's the organisation also represented unskilled workers and this spread widely and rapidly. During the time of industrial unionism in 1889 the dock strike was the rise to general labour union. At the time of World War I the trade union were co-operating with the employer and the government. By 1918 the union were stronger than before and had 8 million people join the union. In 1926 the Trade Union Congress called a strike for the miners but this collapsed after nine days, which left the trade union to continue alone for six months.

Under the Trade Union Act of 1927 general strikes and strikes for sympathy with other workers was made illegal. By 1944 the trade union had risen again to 8 million and the Act of 1927 was abolish by the Labour Government in 1946. From the 1960's the arguments between the trade unions and the government set the opinion of the public against the trade union. The Labour government in 1946 to 1970 attempted to set laws to improve the union but they were strongly against this idea, and were eventually abolished in 1969.

The Labour government in 1974 cancelled the Conservative government's Industrial Relation Act 1971. Voluntary wage was control under the social contract. By the 1980's trade union membership had declined and there were only 438 unions with 12,947,000 members. In 1988, there were 314 unions with a membership of 10,238,000.

About 55 per cent of the workforce belonged to unions in 1979, but the figure dropped to 43 per cent by 1987. The government, in the Employment Acts of 1980 and 1982, limited the closed shop, picketing, secondary action against anyone other than the employer in dispute, conflict of trade unions in respect of unlawful activity by their officials, and the definition of a trade dispute, which must be between workers and employers, not between workers. The Trade Union Act 1984 made it compulsory to have secret ballots for elections and before strikes. Picketing was limited to the establishment at which strikes were taking place.

The Employment Act 1988 contains further requirements regulating union affairs, including further requirements for ballots; rights for members not to be unfairly disciplined and leaving out the use of union funds to cover union officers fined for contempt of court or other offences. During the 1980's unemployment rose, and the government introduced new restrictions on trade union. As a result, UK trade unions had lost some power by the beginning of the 1990's. Many unions accepted low pay rises in order to protect jobs. More workers took early retirement, worked part-time or became self-employed, or were not trade union members. By 1979 Margaret Thatcher let the Conservative party to a new programme to refresh the economy through depression, deregulation, privatisation, and the reduction of trade union power.

The economy agreed with a global recession. British unemployment topped 3 million, along with signs of a growing division between the depressed North and the South. Productivity improved and activity was encouraged in an economy increasingly based on services, but the 'economic miracle' of the mid- 1980's proved short-lived, and unemployment remained high. She faced trade-union power during the miners's trike in 1984 to 1985, but she sold off majority stakes in many public utilities to the private sector, and reduced the influence of local government through such measures as the abolition of metropolitan councils. She introduction the community charge, or poll tax, in 1989 and in 1990, division in the cabinet over the issues of Europe and the agreement of the government forced her resignation. Thatcher was the mostly influential peacetime conservative prime minister of the 20th century.

She had claimed to have 'rolled back the frontiers of the state' by reducing income-tax rates, selling off council houses, and allowing for greater individual choice in areas such as education. But these plan often resulted in greater central government control. She left the opposition Labour Party in confusion, and forced it to a basic review of its policies. Her spitefulness was revealed in her crusade against local councils, which she tried to pursue at the cost of the concern for social equity. In 1991, after three months of relative calmness on the backbenches, she made it obvious that she intended to remain an active voice in domestic and international politics. Her first speech in the House of Lords was an attack on the government's policies.

Since leaving public office, she has devoted herself to the development of her individual beliefs through the 'Thatcher Foundation' As prime minister she sharply reduced public spending to bring down inflation, but at the cost of generating a recession: manufacturing output fell by a fifth, and unemployment rose to over 3 million. Her election victory in 1987 made her the first prime minister in 160 years to be elected for a third term, but she became increasingly isolated. In January 1972, after two years of negotiations, treaties of accession were signed to admit the four applicant countries on January 1, 1973. The United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark joined as scheduled, however, Norway voted against membership.

The European Community membership meant that United Kingdom law is lesser important to the provisions of the Treaty of Rome, that the single acts and regulations and directives made under the treaty. In the United Kingdom, resistance to European Community membership continued. After the Labour party return to power in 1974, the party carried out its election promise to renegotiate British membership conditions. The renegotiation resulted was only minor changes. The Labour government was divided so they agreed to continued membership in the European Community. Although there were strong opposition from some groups, the British people voted for United Kingdom to stay in the European Community membership.

In 1979 and 1980, the British government, argued that the value of its assistance went far beyond the value of benefits that were received. Hey tried to attempt to change the terms of the European Union membership. The conflict was resolved during the spring of 1980 when several members agreed to pay a greater share of the European Community costs. In 1984 the European Community agreed that the United Kingdom would receive a partial repayment of its annual net contributions to the European Community, beginning with a repayment of US$800 million for that year. The European Union had only six members - Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands then was joined by the United Kingdom, Denmark, and the Republic of Ireland in 1973, Greece in 1981, and Spain and Portugal in 1986. East Germany was included on German reunification in 1990.

Austria, Finland, and Sweden joined in 1995. In 1999 leaders of the European Union agreed that another seven countries should be recognised as candidates to join the union. Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania, Slovakia, and Turkey joined six other countries that were also waiting to join, which were: Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, and Slovenia. On 1 January 2000, Portugal took over the rotating European Union presidency, with included expanding membership, developing defence policy, and tackling unemployment.

European union, including political and monetary union, and for a new system of police and military cooperation. The aims of the European union include the expansion of trade, reduction of competition, the abolition of restrictive trading practices, the encouragement of free movement of capital and labour within the alliance, and the establishment of a closer union among European people. A single market with free movement of goods and capital The European union reached an agreement on economic and political policy with the co-operation with 12 Middle Eastern and North African countries in the Barcelona Declaration in November 1995, and an agreement between the USA and the European union to move towards economic and political policy, which was signed in December 1995. As the Treaty on European Union increased the political powers of the European Council, other parties took on optional roles, which were held by the parliament. The Economic and Social Committee is one of the most important of these parties. It has 222 members, which are chosen to four year terms by the Council of Members to represent employer and employee groups, as well as other interest groups.

The committee has a strictly advisory role, but the Council of Ministers and the European Commission are duty-bound to consult the committee on many law-making issues. Another important group is the Committee of the Regions, created by the Treaty on European Union to bring the European Union closer to its citizens and to give regional and local establishment a voice in government. The committee's membership is based on the population of each country. It has no law-making power, but must be consulted on matters relating to certain economic and social issues. When Tony Blair, for the Labour government won the election in May 1997 he introduced new laws to give more rights to the employees. He made a law where he introduced minimum wage where by the pay would not fall.

In May 1998 the Labour government announced a decision on trade union rights. It stated that an employer would be required to recognise a union if a minimum of 40% of the total workforce voted in favour of union representation. The Labour government reformed the employment and trade union law, which was fairness at work. The three main elements for this law was: . Provisions for basic fair treatment of employees.

New procedures for collective representation at work. Policies that enhance family life while making it easier for people - both men and women - to go to work. The fall in trade union membership stopped in 1999. The economy was much stronger and there was a government much less aggressive to the unions.

The introduction of the national minimum wage in April 1999 provided pay rises for some 1.4 million women and 500,000 men. Tony Blair, with the Labour government also moved some way towards restoring some trade union rights. By year 2000 British trade unionism was adapting to the changes in patterns of employment. This was in order to appeal to young and part-time workers, most of who were female. John Monks, the General Secretary of the TUC since 1993 commented of the trade union movement in December 1999: "We need to provide the information and services that people need in an insecure world". One service that the unions were particularly successful in was providing representation at employment tribunals.

The unions were also moving towards direct communication with their members, rather than having group meeting. The 21st century has changed since the Conservative party had won the election. When they were the head of this country they wanted to compete against other countries like America and Germany. During the time Margaret Thatcher was the prime minister the unemployment was high and was rise she believed that this because of the trade unions so she striped most of the rights of the union so they had very little power and the employer had more power over them.

So if an employee had a dispute with the employer then the individual employee would have to try and sort out the dispute because the trade union had very little power. So if the employees wanted to go on strike then they would have been fired because they did not have the help of the trade unions. For an employee to go on strike they would have to ask the employer before they could. But in the 21st century the employees can go on strike with out the permission of the employer for example the fire fighter today have gone on strike because there pay is low but if this had happened when Margaret Thatcher was prime minister than they would have been fired because they did not have permission from the employer.

So we can say that the people living in the 21st century have a better quality of life for employment than they did in the 1960's to the 1980's but it got better during the 1990's when the Labour government were the head of out country as they changes the laws and gave employees rights which included the right to be a member of a trade union.