Letter in The Guardian, August 17th.
As academics in the field of industrial relations, we express our concern at the draconian provisions of the trade union bill which amount to the most sustained attack on trade union and workers’ rights since the Combination laws of the early 19th century. In addition to minimum thresholds that seriously curtail the possibility of legitimate strike action, the bill also attacks the ability of unions to represent their members (via facility time) and raise subscriptions (through employer check-off) from members, among a battery of other restrictive measures.
The rationale for the bill is perverse. Trade unions in Britain are not too strong, but too weak. They provide an important voice for the expression and protection of workers’ terms and conditions of employment, and are a countervailing force against the excesses of employer power. They can also contribute to innovation, skills-upgrading and workplace performance. Given the fact the UK labour market is already one of the most flexible and least regulated in the global economy, evidence in support of the benefits of the bill is seriously wanting.
By further undermining the collective bargaining power of unions it will feed into the labour market by increasing endemic low pay and insecure terms and conditions of employment among non-unionised workers.
Instead, the government should be looking more seriously at how to engage and involve the British workforce and its representatives in rebuilding the UK economy and raising productivity through fairer and more supportive rights for workers.
Professor Mark Stuart President, British Universities Industrial Relations Association, University of Leeds
Professor Ralph Darlington Salford Business School, University of Salford
Professor Jane Holgate, Centre for Employment Relations, Innovation and Change, Leeds University Business School
Professor Philip Taylor Vice dean, Strathclyde Business School
Professor Keith Ewing Professor of public law, Kings College London
Professor Edmund Heery Professor of employment relations, Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University
Professor Stephanie Tailby Centre for Employment Studies Research, University of the West of England
Professor Miguel Martinez Lucio Manchester University Business School
Professor Steve Vincent Head of leadership, work and organisations, Newcastle University Business School
Dr Stephen Mustchin University of Manchester
Dr Andrew Smith Bradford University School of Management
Professor Hazel Conley Centre for Employment Studies Research (CESR), Faculty of Business and Law, University of the West of England
Dr Daniel King Nottingham Trent University
Professor Sonia McKay Visiting professor, Faculty of Business and Law, University of the West of England
Professor Stephen Bach Department of Management, King’s College London
Professor Tony Dundon School of Business and Economics, National University of Ireland Galway
Dr Sophie Gamwell Middlesex University
Dave Smith TUC tutor, College of North East London
Professor Gregor Gall Professor of industrial relations, School of Management, University of Bradford
Professor Geraldine Healy Queen Mary University of London
Dr Peter Scott Senior lecturer in employment relations, University of Portsmouth
Dr Ioulia Bessa Leeds University Business School
Dr Eugene Hickland National University of Ireland Galway
Dr Douglas Martin University of Central Lancashire
Dr Judie Gannon Oxford Brookes University
Dr Jo McBride Newcastle University Business School
Professor Stephen Linstead Director, Centre for the Study of Working Lives, York Management School, University of York
Dr Ian Roper Associate professor, Middlesex University
Dr Jo Grady University of Leicester
Dr Marco Hauptmeier Reader in comparative employment relations, Cardiff University
David Wray Senior visiting research fellow, University of Hertfordshire Business School
Dr Anna Paraskevopoulou Working Lives Research Institute, London Metropolitan University
Dr Ian Greenwood Leeds University Business School
Professor Melanie Simms School of Management, University of Leicester
Dr Tessa Wright School of Business and Management, Queen Mary University of London
Dr Steve Williams Reader in employment relations, University of Portsmouth
Dr Anthony McDonnell Reader in management, Queen’s University Belfast
Dr Zinovijus Ciupiijus Leeds University Business School
Dr Priscilla Ross Co-operative College
Dr Vera Trappmann Leeds University Business School
Caroline Holmes Programme coordinator BA international labour and trade unions studies, Ruskin College, Oxford
Dr Stewart Johnstone Newcastle University
Professor Greg Bamber Visiting professor, Newcastle University Business School
Dr Graham Symon Principal lecturer in human resources and organisational behaviour, University of Greenwich
Dr Zedias Mutema Staffordshire University
John Kimberley Associate professor, Birmingham City University Business School
Professor Andreas Bieler Professor of political economy, School of Politics and International Relations, University of Nottingham
Dr Elizabeth Lawrence Principal lecturer in sociology, Sheffield Hallam University
Professor Jim Arrowsmith Associate fellow, Industrial Relations Research Unit, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick
Dr Paul Smith Honorary research fellow, Keele University
Sue Ledwith Emerita scholar international labour and trade union studies, Ruskin College
Professor Linda Clarke Centre for the Study of the Production of the Built Environment (ProBE), University of Westminster
Professor Ian Greer University of Greenwich Business School
Dr Kate Hardy Leeds University Business School
Dr Fernando Duran-Palma Westminster Business School, University of Westminster
Professor Damian Grimshaw Professor of employment studies, Manchester Business School, University of Manchester; and director, European Work and Employment Research Centre
Dr Anne McBride Senior lecturer in employment studies, Manchester Business School, University of Manchester
Dr Deborah Dean Industrial Relations Research Unit, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick
Professor Chris Forde Centre for Employment Relations, Innovation and Change, Leeds University Business School
Chris McLachlan Postgraduate researcher, Leeds University Business School
Andy Charlwood Professor of human resource management, School of Business and Economics, Loughborough University
Dr Susan Sayce Senior lecturer, University of East Anglia
Dr Alf Crossman Surrey Business School, University of Surrey
Jane Lethbridge Public Services International Research Unit (PSIRU), University of Greenwich
Cecilie Bingham Principal lecturer in employee relations, University of Westminster
Duncan Adam Industrial Relations Research Unit Warwick Business School
Professor Phil Almond Professor of comparative employment relations, De Montford University
Dr Andreas Kornelakis Lecturer in human resource management, School of Business, Management & Economics University of Sussex
Katy Huxley Research Officer, Cardiff University
Professor Anne-marie Greene De Montfort University
Dr Whyeda Gill-Mclure University of Wolverhampton Business School
Dr Scott Hurrell Lecturer in work and employment studies, University of Stirling
Dr Alan Tuckman Centre for Industrial Relations, University of Keele
Alex J Wood Research associate, Department of Sociology, University of Cambridge
Professor Gill Kirton School of Business and Management, Queen Mary University of London
Professor Tony Elger Emeritus professor, Sociology of Work and Employment, University of Warwick
Dr Jacqueline Sinclair School of Business, University College Dublin
Dr Aristea Koukiadaki University of Manchester
Professor Richard Hyman Editor, European Journal of Industrial Relations
Dr Mike Hemmings Doncaster College and University Centre
Professor Michael Gold School of Management, Royal Holloway University of London
Dr Stefania Marino University of Manchester
Dr Nick Parsons Cardiff University
Dr Mike Rigby London South Bank University
Dr Andrew Perchard Senior research fellow, Centre for Business in Society, Coventry University
Professor Francis Green Professor of work and education economics, University College London
Paul Brook Editor, Work, Employment and Society journal, University of Leicester
Emeritus Professor Doug Miller University of Northumbria
Martin Upchurch Professor of international employment relations, Middlesex University Business School
Professor Philip B Whyman Director, Lancashire Institute for Economic and Business Research, Lancashire Business School
Dr Steve Davies School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University
Professor Kim Hoque Warwick Business School
Professor Peter Turnbull Professor of HRM & labour relations, Cardiff Business School, University of Cardiff
Dr Mick McKeown Reader in democratic mental health, University of Central Lancashire
Zander Wedderburn Professor emeritus, Heriot-Watt University
Chrissie Oldfield Senior lecturer in employment relations, London South Bank University
Professor Geoffrey Wood Dean of Essex Business School, University of Essex
Professor John Kelly Birkbeck, University of London
Dr Peter Prowse Senior lecturer in HRM and Employment Relations, Bradford University School of Management
Dr Susan Milner University of Bath
Dr Ed Blissett Senior lecturer in employment relations, University of Hertfordshire
Professor Michael Doherty Department of Law, Maynooth University, Ireland
Dr Jonathan Lord Director of Employability International Strategy, People Management, and Salford Law Unit
Roger Seifert Professor of Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations, Management Research Centre, Wolverhampton Business School
Sian Moore Professor of Work and Employment Relations; Co-Director, Centre for Employment Studies Research (CESR), Bristol Business School, University of the West of England
Dennis Nickson Professor of service work and employment; Academic fellow, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (Academic FCIPD); Editor-in-chief, Employee Relations, Department of Human Resource Management, University of Strathclyde
Dr Maria Koumenta Business School, Queen Mary University of London
Christine Edwards Professor emeritus, Department of Management, Kingston University
Dr Steve French Keele Management School, Keele University
Connie Nolan Senior lecturer, Canterbury Christ Church University
