Member Article

TUC urges Vince Cable to digitize strike ballots

The Trade Union Congress has written to Business Secretary Vince Cable urging him to modernise the rules that govern strike ballots and bring union voting methods into the 21st century.

In the run up to, and during, last week’s strike involving workers from across the public sector, parts of the government – including the Prime Minister – were calling for the thresholds on strike ballots to be raised, despite the fact that no MP in Westminster secured the turnout in the last election that they would have unions achieve.

Keen to explore ways that industrial democracy could be enhanced, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady has called on the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to change the rules so that union members might use their work computers, home laptops, tablets or smartphones to vote in future strike ballots.

In the letter, Frances writes: “In the run up to and during last week’s public sector strike much of the rhetoric coming from parts of government was about making it harder for ordinary workers to go on strike by raising the bar on the number of votes needed, with a view to either stopping lawful industrial action taking place altogether or exposing unions to claims for damages. In our view this amounts to an attempt to ban strikes by the back door.

“The rules governing industrial action ballots in the UK are already very stringent and while there is absolutely no case for imposing a tougher turnout threshold – that not a single Westminster MP met at the last election – unions are keen to explore ways that industrial democracy could be strengthened.

“I know that you are on record opposing any further tightening of the law in this area and supporting the introduction of electronic balloting.

“Electronic forms of vote casting would help bring union balloting into the modern age. Other UK voting systems have moved with the times, but union strike ballots are firmly stuck in the last century.

“Regulated by the outdated 1992 Trade Union and Labour Relations Act, unions still have to ask their members whether they want to take action in a letter sent to their home addresses.

“This means of communication works for some, but for many workers leading busy lives, it’s all too easy for the ballot envelope to be put to one side – at best only opened after the deadline or, as is more likely, simply recycled.

“Whilst any strike ballot where a majority of members in a workplace vote for action is a legal and legitimate result, unions would clearly prefer to see more people participating. But to do that we need to update the rules and let people vote on their digital devices.

“Workers who want to continue voting using traditional postal methods would of course still be able to do so. But electronic communication via a secure online link which union members could access either at home or at work, or when they’re out and about via their smartphone or tablet, would be a simple and inexpensive way of increasing turnout.

“Three-quarters of adults now have access to broadband at home, 94% own a mobile and seven in ten a smartphone.

“With these figures going up all the time – even amongst low-income workers – it seems strange for some ministers to slam unions for low turnouts whilst having little enthusiasm for the 21st century methods of voting that would encourage greater participation.”

Bdaily asked Cable’s department for comment and a BIS spokesperson said: “The Government understands the need to modernise the way in which union ballots are held, whilst also allowing all union members to use whatever method is best for them to communicate with their union.

“There are no current plans to change industrial action law, however we will keep any ideas under consideration.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .