Stephen Levinson ponders the legalities of restraining strikes
What is a legitimate strike? We have been arguing about this since Disraeli introduced the concept of trade union immunity in 1875.
The threat of an increasing number of strikes is obviously real. If “something must be done”, the difficult questions are where should the boundaries of legitimacy be drawn and how should they be enforced? So far, the answers put forward by politicians have been mechanistic rather than principled.
Politicians speak out
Business secretary Vince Cable threatens unspecified laws to curb union power. Ed Miliband told the Guardian that strikes should be a last resort. A backbencher has proposed a Bill banning strikes in the emergency and transport sectors and Boris Johnson, the beloved mayor of London, wants a ban on any strike that fails to secure the backing of 50% of those able to vote.
Unions and their supporters complain endlessly that there is no right to strike in the UK, only a regime of immunities. Various shifts in statute and case law have changed the requirements. The most effective, or controversial,
